Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle
by Assassin master ezio 91
Summary: Following his failed attempt to win the hand of the fair Princess Zelda, a disgraced Hylian Knight seeks for a way to make the Princess his bride, he soon unleashes a great evil as he gains a new ally, a mysterious and deadly man called Ganondorf. Now the fates call upon a boy named Link as Hyrule's last hope against the great evil of Ganondorf.
1. Prologue: Legend of Ganondorf Dragmire

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Prologue of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

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**Prologue: Legend of Ganondorf Dragmire**

Two hundred years ago, an event known as 'The Great Cataclysm' threatened to destroy the land of Hyrule. The different diverse races of Hyrule each had their own culture and, due to personal differences, tended to have difficulty getting along with each other. There was only one thing each race agreed on and that was their mistrust of the final race in Hyrule, the Gerudo. The Gerudo were a race of dark skinned women who lived in Hyrule's western deserts. They were known as murderers, thieves and kidnappers; their main victims were usually males taken to their home for the purpose of procreation. Every one hundred years however a male Gerudo is born, destined to be their king, he woul live for one hundred years and then die as the next king was born. However, three hundred years ago, an exceptionally powerful Gerudo king was born, his name was Ganondorf Dragmire. He was deeply saddened by his people's plight. The Gerudo lived in the desert regions of Hyrule, right next to a large wasteland, said to be haunted. All year round, during the day, the sun would shine down with almost unbearable heat and death from heatstroke was common. At night everything became freezing and hypothermia and frostbite became the common causes of death. During the autumn and winter months a harsh wind would blow from the wasteland, carrying with it death to all those unfortunate enough to lack the strength to resist it. In the spring and summer months the wind blew from the east. This wind carried with it the sweet smells and signs of life from the main part of Hyrule. Ganondorf was jealous of the other races for their lack of care for his desperate people and he hatched a desperate plan to save his people. Finally, one hundred years later, he found a plan that would actually work.

Ganondorf's surrogate mothers were the twin sorceress sisters Koume and Kotake, collectively known as Twinrova. They taught him how to channel his great strength and magic and also told him of an ancient relic within Hyrule known as the Triforce. The Triforce was said to be a gift from the three great Goddess' Din, Farore and Nayru. The Triforce was said contain the essence of the Gods and could grant whoever held it whatever wish they held in their heart. Ganondorf saw this as a chance to save his people and so began negotiations to the King of Hyrule. By this point Hyrule's Civil War had cooled and was in a stalemate. The Gerudo had no part in the war neither did the peace-loving Kokiri, this left the Hylians, Gorons and Zoras as the main fighters in the war. The Hylians had proven themselves militarily superior to the other two races and were in a stalemate as they were uncertain if the Gorons and Zoras would destroy each other or negotiate peace and attack together. Ganondorf pretended to pledge allegiance to the King of Hyrule and began secretly gathering information about the location of the Triforce. After much effort he succeeded and finding it and, with the unwitting aid of a young boy called Link, he laid his hands on the sacred relic.

However something happened that Ganondorf did not expect, the Triforce did not grant his wish, instead it split into three. He claimed one part, the Triforce of Power. The Triforce of Courage went to the boy Link while the Triforce of Wisdom went to Hyrule's Princess, Zelda. Driven mad with rage Ganondorf was met with the visage of the Demon King; Demise. Demise revealed that everything Ganondorf had done had been carefully calculated by the Demon King himself, Ganondorf was now locked in Demise' spell and doomed to curse the descendents of the Link and Zelda who had defeated Demise over a thousand years ago. This was too much for the proud Thief-King and, using the Triforce of Power he transformed into a rampaging beast called Ganon. In this form he attacked Hyrule Castle Town and the Castle itself, killing many innocent people and slaying the King before fleeing back to the Gerudo Valley and reassuming human form. Zelda was swiftly given her father's power but refused to commit to the authority of being Queen until the issue of Ganondorf was resolved. Under her direction the Civil War ended and all the races banded together against the common threat of the Gerudo. With Link leading the army the Gerudo found themselves being slaughtered and in danger of extinction. The Gerudo Second in Command Nabooru decided to make a deal with the opposing army. Despite being heavily pregnant with the next Gerudo King, she went to meet with Zelda and explained the deal.

The Gerudo had finally realized that Ganondorf would destroy them and they were all losing faith in him, due to his new power he would not die when he was supposed to and the new king was in danger of being killed at birth. Desperate to preserve her, mostly, innocent people and her unborn child, Nabooru offered Ganondorf to the army in exchange for the Gerudo being left alone. Zelda agreed to this deal and Twinrova bound Ganondorf with magic and, after he was formally exiled from his people, handed him over to the Ancient Sages who took Ganondorf even deeper into the Haunted Wasteland. There they led him to a special temple they had built for their purpose, not far from the Spirit Temple run by the Spirit Sage. Despite his efforts Ganondorf was sealed within this temple, his body frozen to a throne by magic, held in place by a magical lock for which a glowing golden sword, known as the Goddess Sword, served as the key. After this Hyrule knew peace once more, the Gerudo still suffered the same problems but instead of taking actions they completely sealed themselves away from the rest of Hyrule. Occasionally a small raiding party would appear to attack a village, but only for food and other basic supplies. After a few years of this, the townspeople took to welcoming these raiding parties and instead of fleeing, they prepared bags containing what the Gerudo usually took and handed them over. While surprised at first the Gerudo began to adapt to this as well and soon the raiding parties became messenger parties, leaving their weapons behind.

Demise's curse still lingered and although his body was frozen, Ganondorf's spirit was able to repeatedly attack and end up defeated by Link and Zelda's descendents again and again. Demise explained to Ganondorf that he would never be free until he successfully killed the Link and Zelda of that era. Ganondorf resented this and began seeking ways to free himself of Demise's control. He believed the main reason he was always defeated was due to the fact it was only his spirit and not his spirit and body that was attacking them. He yearned for his spirit and body to be reunited so he could claim his full powers. After a two hundred year wait, he would soon get his wish.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please, at least one review will guarantee that I will do the next chapter when I can manage it.


	2. Fighting for Love

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Mastermind 16X: Thanks glad you enjoyed it, well I hope this truly catches your interest although the main action doesn't really start until chapter 5.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or it's characters.

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**Fighting for Love**

It was a bright sunny day in Hyrule Castle, the town was buzzing with excitement as they gathered in the market square. They were not purchasing or even looking at the merchandise for sale, but the shop keepers didn't mind as they too were enjoying the spectacle that had everyone's attention. In the centre of the market square a large arena had been erected and at this moment two warriors were fighting within it while other warriors stood on the sidelines. These fights were part of a tournament being held in order to select the strongest warrior as the husband for Princess Zelda. Sitting on a raised pavilion was a tall man with a toned build, short neat slicked back blonde hair and blue eyes. He was dressed in regal robes and a golden crown sat on his head. This man was well known and well liked throughout Hyrule, his name was Dynast Hyrule, he was the 122nd King of Hyrule. He watched as the valiant warriors fought for the honour of claiming his daughter's hand in marriage.

'_So many brave souls,'_ He thought to himself, _'I had no idea my daughter was _this_ popular, which one will prove himself worthy I wonder.'_

As he watched he heard footsteps behind him and then his daughter's voice.

"Good morning father." Princess Zelda Hyrule greeted her father as she sat down next to him.

Zelda Hyrule was of medium height with a slender build and had long dirty blonde hair which reached down to the middle of her back and blue eyes. She was dressed in her own regal robes and jewellery.

Dynast smiled and gestured out to the arena.

"I am amazed by all the men who have turned up for a chance to prove themselves worthy of marrying you." He commented, Zelda smiled slightly, "Yes, although…I must admit, some are more desirable than others."

As she said the last sentence she glared distastefully at one of the fighters. He was a young man with a toned build and was of medium height; he had medium length black hair and blue eyes and was clad in Hylian Knight Armour. His name was Phillipe Akatosh; he was a Captain of the Hylian Knights and also one of the Royal Guards. He was well known for his almost obsessive love for the Princess although she despised him. As they watched the match Phillipe's opponent began to gain the advantage when suddenly Phillipe took a cheap shot, slamming the pommel of his sword into the side of his opponent's head, dazing the man. Dynasty immediately stood up.

"Enough stop the match." He bellowed as both fighters turned to look at him, "Captain Akatosh, you are disqualified from the tournament."

Phillipe looked outraged.

"What, but I…" He began but Dynast cut across him, "You broke the rules, it was to be a straight up honourable fight, no cheap tricks involved. Now leave the area, or I will have the guards remove you, and you will find yourself stripped of your position."

Grumbling to himself Phillipe turned and stalked out of the arena and joined the crowd as the tournament continued. Phillipe stalked over to where his second in command was waiting. His second in command was a young man named Link Hylias. Link was of medium height and had short messy blonde hair and blue eyes; he was also toned and clad in Hylian Knight Armour.

"Captain…?" He began but Phillipe just growled, "Leave it Link, return to your barracks, immediately."

Link sighed but followed the order and left for his barracks.

Once Link returned to the barracks he unstrapped his weapons and shield and stared out the window.

'_I told Captain Akatosh to fight by the rules…Why didn't he listen to me?'_ Link thought to himself.

"Link."

He turned to face the owner of the voice and smiled. The figure that had called out o him was a young woman roughly the same height with shoulder length brown hair and brown eyes. She was rather slender and clad in a simple white dress and white shoes. Her name was Lynia Dolphness; she was an assistant at the local Temple and was also a close friend of Link.

"You look troubled?" She commented, Link nodded, "Yeah, it's Captain Akatosh; he's just been disqualified from the tournament, because he didn't fight by the rules set. I'm worried; he's getting more rash and aggressive every day."

Lynia nodded.

"I see…but there's something else, I can see it, see it in your eyes. What's really troubling you?"

Link turned away from her and gazed out of the window again.

"Lately…I've been having these, strange dreams." He admitted, "I'm…I'm standing in front of the gates to the main keep of the castle. The outer walls are in ruins, as if a battle has just been fought. I'm standing with other knights and two shadowy figures, in the opposing army is also a shadowy figure, I can't make them out."

He paused briefly before shuddering.

"But then I see someone else in the opposing army, a giant of a man with green skin and red hair, he's carrying a glowing sword and seems to just…radiate malice. He raises his hand to attack me and…I wake up, every time, I wake up just before he attacks."

There was silence after Link finished until finally Lynia found her voice.

"Link, sometimes…Dreams are just…dreams." She stated, "Don't look too much into it, okay."

"I guess you are right." Link replied before smiling, "Well, it's getting late, the tournament will be over. I'll see you tomorrow."

Lynia nodded and left while Link removed his armour and got ready for bed.

The following day Link awoke punctually at six in the morning, the sun was just rising as he got himself dressed in his armour again. Just then one of the other guards approached him.

"Sir, his Royal Majesty the Kind requests you to meet him in the throne room." Link nodded and the soldier left.

Link entered the throne room and approached the thrones were the royal family sat. Dynast sat on the largest throne, dressed in his regal robes and crown, sitting on the throne next to him was a slender woman of above average height with shoulder length brown hair and brown eyes. She too was dressed in regal robes and a crown, this was Dynast's wife; Queen Cordelia Hyrule. On a smaller throne, sitting to the left of her mother was Zelda. Link bowed at the foot of the thrones and Dynast smiled.

"Rise Link," Once Link stood up he continued, "Now, yesterday the tournament ended and one man has proven himself to be worthy of my daughters hand."

Link nodded to indicate he understood.

"In fact," Dynasty continued with a knowing look, "It appears he knows you claimed to be an old friend of yours."

Link was surprised at this, "What's his name?" He asked, Dynast's reply surprised Link, "Dooram Redguard."

Although surprised Link smiled.

"Dooram Redguard, from Kakariko?" Dynast nodded, "Yes I know him. We were at the Knight's Academy together. He left to become a guardian for the village."

"Well he is now the future King." Dynast explained, "Which is why I've called you here, before the wedding, before they can even see each other, Zelda must receive the blessings of the spirits in the Temple of Time. However lately strange creatures have been appearing on the route to the Temple."

Link nodded, "You wish me to escort Princess Zelda?" He questioned, Dynast nodded, "That is correct, ensure she reaches the Temple safely, then, once she has received the blessings of the spirits, escort her back. You are the only one I can trust to do this."

Link bowed again.

"I will not let you down Your Majesty." The Royal Family smiled and thanked Link before Zelda spoke up, "I will wait for you by the main gate. In case you want to talk to Dooram first."

Link thanked her and left the throne room to get ready. He felt honoured to have been chosen for such an important task and he was determined not to fail.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	3. A Dirty Secret

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Chapter 3 of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**MasterMind 16X: Thanks, glad you are enjoying it and like my writing. Well, here's the third chapter, hopefully it'll be up to standard. If there is any questions you want to ask about the story then please PM me, I don't mind.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

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**A Dirty Secret**

Before going to join Princess Zelda at the gates Link headed to the champion's quarters to greet his old friend Dooram Redguard. Dooram Redguard was a muscular man of above medium height with short black hair, black eyes and dark skin. He was clad in simple leather armour. He looked up as his visitor came in and he smiled widely.

"Link!" He greeted cheerfully, "It's been too long my friend."

"Way too long." Link agreed as they grasped each others hand and applied some slight pressure before letting go, "So, you won the tournament."

Dooram nodded, "Yes, I won the right to marry the most beautiful maiden in the land. I don't know if I should call it luck or destiny."

Link laughed as Dooram gazed out of the window.

"So," He said finally, "The ceremonies already begin; Zelda is on her way to the Temple of Time, right?"

Link nodded, "Yes, I am her escort." Dooram nodded, "They chose wisely, I wish I could go myself but…You know how it is, the bride and groom aren't allowed to see each other until the wedding."

Link smiled and clapped his hand on Dooram's shoulder.

"That's the day after tomorrow; not that long a wait."

Dooram smiled and they said their farewells before Link headed to the main gate to meet with Zelda.

Zelda was waiting for Link as he arrived.

"Are you ready Link?" She asked, he smiled and nodded, "Yes, Your Highness."

She nodded and they turned to the guards who opened the gates they both stepped out.

"There's the Temple of Time." Zelda stated as she pointed to it, a large white stone building on top of a hill, "There's only one route too it, I guess that's why it's become a dangerous journey."

"One route, so it's easy for monster and bandits to lie in ambush," Link concluded, "No other way for their prey to go or escape."

Zelda nodded and together they began to walk towards the hill. As they walked they took in the breathtaking sights of natural beauty that were commonplace in the land of Hyrule. The sky was blue and clear with no clouds, the sun shone overhead as they walked through the lightly wooded path that led up the hill towards the Temple. As they walked however Link had a growing sense of unease and kept looking around, he was sure they were being watched. Sure enough they reached the Guidestones, the halfway point, when suddenly a group of four men stepped out from behind the trees and amongst the foliage. They were all tall muscular men with wild unkempt hair and beards, each brandished a crude sword and they were dressed in rags, bandits.

"Well, well, looks like we got some big prey." One of them stated as he grinned, showing his blackened teeth.

The others laughed and then the one who had spoken spoke up again.

"Remember the contract, we have our orders." He stated, "We do this right, we get plenty of Rupees."

The others nodded and closed ranks as Link drew his sword and shield.

"Okay boy," One of them stated, "Hand over the Princess and no one gets hurt."

"I don't think so." Link snapped, "I have an important duty, you will not touch her."

"Stupid boy!"

With that they attacked.

However these men were mere bandits, they lacked the finesse and skill of a trained knight. While they swung wildly and charged blindly Link kept his footing and used his shield to ward off their attacks. Seizing an opening he thrust with his sword, piercing his targets shoulder, making him drop his sword. He followed up with a spinning slash which cut down two of them; the wounded man had grasped his sword again but was killed with a swift slash to the neck. The final man panicked, dropped his sword and ran screaming.

"That's the end of that." Link stated as he sheathed his sword and breathed a sigh of relief. "Link, are you okay?"

He turned to Zelda and nodded.

"Yes, Your Highness, we should push on." He answered, she nodded and they continued until finally, with no more interruptions, they reached the Temple of Time.

When they arrived Zelda presented herself to the high priest who welcomed her. Due to the nature of the ceremony Zelda would enter the Temple alone with the high priest and two attendants, Link would have to wait outside. As he waited he looked over the view from the top of the hill.

'_I can't imagine a more spectacular view.'_ He thought to himself as he gazed over the vast plains of the Hyrule Field.

From his vantage point he could see something else which caught his attention, it was a trading camp, the flags identified the people in charge of the camp.

'_I see the Gerudo have come to conduct trade with us again.'_ He thought, _'Looks like the unofficial peace treaty is still going strong.'_

He had informed the guards at the Temple of the bandit attack, they had gone to clear away the bodies and to hunt down the survivor. Finally Zelda emerged from the Temple and together they both began to head back down the path, heading back to the castle.

When they reached the Guidestones again however Link noticed something amiss. Above the trees he could see what looked like smoke.

"Link, what's wrong?" Zelda asked, he pointed out the smoke to her, "It's coming from the trading camp I spotted earlier."

"Think we should have a look?" Link pondered briefly and then nodded, "Okay, but we better stay outta sight."

So they crept through the woods until they reached the edge of the forest. From here they were hidden from view but could see the trading camp clearly. What they saw horrified them, the camp was in flames and under attack, by Hylian Knights.

"This can't be right; we've always maintained a peaceful relation with the Gerudo." Zelda stated, "Ever since the end of the Great War."

"It's worse than that, this isn't an ordered attack, it's him, taking things to the extreme again." Link replied as he recognized the distinctive crest the knights bore, "They're being attacked, just because they're Gerudo."

As he said that the instigator of the attack appeared, sure enough, as Link feared, it was Phillipe.

"That'll teach these scum not to set foot on our land!" He growled, "I can't believe the King let's them roam freely like this."

Finally he sheathed his sword and gave his men orders to return to the Castle. Link and Zelda also headed back, Zelda was to inform her father of the success of the ceremony. She would also buy time for Link so he could sneak into Phillipe's quarters and find the documents Phillipe used to feign the order to attack the camp.

After waiting for Phillipe to leave to attend to other duties Link slipped inside his quarters. He spotted the desk which held Phillipe's documents on it and in the drawers; he quickly got to work searching through them. Finally he found what he was looking for, a forged attack order, with a fake signature from King Dynast, the forgery was expertly done. In fact from what Link could see, it was an official attack document; however the King's signature was not in King Dynast's handwriting, but Phillipe's. However it was then a second letter caught his eye, a contract of sort, promising four hundred Rupees to a group of bandits if they captured Princess Zelda.

'_He was behind the bandit attack too, this goes too far, he has to be stopped.'_

Despite feeling pained that he was going against his superior officer, Link took both documents, placed them in his pouch and left the room. He was just in time since, as he hurried to the throne room he saw Phillipe returning to his room.

'_Have to put a stop to this, right now.'_

Link hurried to the throne room, hoping he could prevent further mishaps like this from happening again, he didn't want Zelda and Dooram's wedding to be ruined, and Phillipe likely would unless he was dealt with swiftly.

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End of chapter, Phillipe's actions have taken a turn for the worst. While it is obvious he is a villain, the question remains, how big a villain will he be? Hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	4. A Change in Command

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Chapter 3 of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**MasterMind 16X: Thanks, glad you are enjoying it, the story has only just begun remember, there is still plenty of time for character development and such.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

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**A Change in Command**

Link hurried to the throne room and found that Phillipe had beaten him to it, he was reporting on the bandit attack and as Link listened he realized how expertly Phillipe had planned both incidents in which he was implicated.

"Yes, Your Majesty," He stated, "Following his escape after Link killed his comrades, that bandit regrouped with the rest of his clan and attacked the Gerudo camp."

Link shook with rage at the audacity of the lie; he knew he had the proof to prove it so all he had to do was present it.

"My men did what they could, but we were too late to save the Gerudo."

Link hurried up to the thrones.

"Your Majesty!" He called out, bowing as he approached, Dynast looked shocked at the intrusion, "Link, what is the meaning of this, we are in the middle of an important discussion."

"Your Majesty, Captain Akatosh is lying!" Link revealed, "He paid the bandits to kidnap the Princess, he also used a forged attack decree to destroy the Gerudo camp himself!"

"What, Link, you should hold your tongue!" Phillipe said dangerously, Dynast glared, "These are dangerous accusations Link."

Link then produced the letters, Phillipe saw them and gaped.

"You, what were you doing in my barracks, you had no right to…"

"Wait a moment." Cordelia Hyrule interrupted, "We're forgetting we have a very reliable witness. Zelda was there the whole time, remember."

Dynast turned to his daughter, Phillipe looked agitated as Zelda nodded, "Link is telling the truth father, I saw the whole thing…Those letters he has, will prove it."

"Hold on, aren't we forgetting he broke into my quarters, shouldn't he…" Phillipe tried to interrupt but Dynast cut across him, "Enough! If this is all true, that is the least of your worries. Link, give the letters to me."

Link approached the throne and handed the letters to King Dynast before stepping back.

As Dynast read the letters Phillipe became more and more agitated. Finally, Dynast finished and glared at Phillipe.

"So…" He began dangerous, Phillipe tried desperately to defend himself, "They…They're forgeries, they must be fakes..."

"They clearly aren't, both a genuine articles, and that is your handwriting, not mine on the signature." Dynast remarked angrily, "So, you thought to satisfy your own personal prejudice against the Gerudo and kidnap my daughter."

"Your Majesty…!"

"ENOUGH!" Dynast bellowed, "Phillipe, you are relieved of your position as Captain and are exiled from Hyrule forthwith. Remove yourself from the Castle at once, or I will have the guards remove you."

Phillipe looked like he was about to argue but then growled and stormed out in a fit of rage. There was a short silence after he left but then Dynast sighed and turned to Link.

"Thank you Link, I am grateful you exposed this scoundrel for what he is." He stated, "In honour of your deed, I'm promoting you to the recently vacated rank of Captain."

Link bowed, "I am honoured, Your Majesty, thank you."

Dynast nodded and Link was allowed to leave, still worried about what was happening with Phillipe he decided to visit Dooram to take his mind off things.

He found Dooram in the great hall, enjoying a meal at one of the tables. When he spotted Link Dooram waved him over. Link hurried over and sat down.

"Hey, there you are, so how did it go?" He asked, Link smiled, "The ceremony is over, and everything's ready, the day after tomorrow, you two will be wed."

"That's great news!" Dooram exclaimed happily before becoming serious, "What's wrong, something's distracting you."

Link sighed and told him about Phillipe, his connections with the bandits, the slaughter of the Gerudo and his dismissal and Link's promotion to Captain in Phillipe's place.

"Link, this isn't something to worry about." Dooram replied, "This is something we should celebrate."

He poured Link a drink before refilling his own cup and raising it.

"Here's to your promotion!" Link smiled and they both drank before Link sighed, "Look, I'm just worried Phillipe will still try something."

"Link, Phillipe has been exiled and branded a criminal, before long all Hyrule will know what he's done." Dooram explained, "After that, he'll have nowhere to go, all he can do now, is crawl into the wilderness and hope he isn't found."

"I guess you're right…Well, time to celebrate, my promotion and your soon to be marriage."

Dooram smiled and poured more drinks for them as they began their celebration.

Phillipe meanwhile was staggering through a desolate and barren land. He had lost track of time and had no idea how long he had been wandering, all he knew was he had somehow ended up in his most hated area of Hyrule, Gerudo Desert.

'_I swear,'_ He thought to himself with a growl, _'One of those foul dark skins comes anywhere near me I'll kill her, filthy beasts.'_

He shook his head and staggered onwards, trying to find somewhere to rest, the heat was almost unbearable.

'_How did I end up in the middle of this desolate hellhole anyway?!'_

Just when he was about to scream with rage he stopped, directly ahead of him was a large stone building, a temple. He hurried as quickly as he could inside of it. Inside it was dark; it looked like an old cathedral only it was deserted. There was a large flight of stone steps on the other side of the hall that led up to a shadowy area. At the top he could just make out a large stone throne and what looked like a statue of a figure chained to it. Halfway up the steps was a platform, on it was a pedestal and embedded in that pedestal was a large golden sword that glowed with light.

'_I can feel the power from that sword from here.'_ Phillipe noticed, then an evil grin appeared on his face, _'If I have that sword, I'll be unstoppable, I'll just have to claim it.'_

With that he confidently climbed the steps and reached the sword, smirking he pulled it out of its pedestal. Just then the whole temple shook.

"What the…What is this?!" Phillipe gasped as suddenly the temple flared with light.

After briefly flared with light the throne area went dark again. Then, from the pedestal, trails of energy flowed towards the throne and gathered into the statue, which Phillipe now realized was a living being. There was a blinding flash and Phillipe fell over, as he struggled to focus again he heard a cold aggressive voice echoing throughout the chamber.

"Free…at last!"

He looked up towards the throne as the figure on it broke the chains binding him and stood up, into the light.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, got some real action coming up in the next chapter, read and review please.


	5. The Reborn Evil

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**MaterMind 16X: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, here is the next chapter.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

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**The Reborn Evil**

It was late at night; the following day would be a big day for Hyrule as it was the wedding between Dooram Redguard and Zelda Hyrule. The newly appointed Captain of the Guard, Link, had finished his duties for the night and had returned to his quarters. On his way there however he ran into his friend, Lynia, she seemed agitated.

"Link." She called out to him; he approached her, "What's wrong Lynia?"

"Your dream, the one you told me about, do you still have it?" She asked, confused Link nodded in confirmation and she explained, "I have had a similar dream, I fell like a great evil is approaching."

Link sighed.

"If there is, there's nothing else we can do," Link explained, "The castle's defense can't get any stronger. Plus we have Dooram, the finest swordsman in Hyrule here."

"Maybe you are right."

"All we can do is hope, that our dreams are just dreams." He finished.

Lynia nodded and, seemingly calmer, bid him goodnight before returning to her chapel. Link returned to his quarters, pondering the strange circumstances that had been revealed. He removed his armour and set it on its stand; he did the same with his sword and got ready for bed.

As he lay down he pondered his thoughts, _'Everything is as good as it can be, all we can do…If any evil attacks us, is do our utmost to repel it.'_

With that he drifted off to sleep.

It was almost dawn when he was awoken by strange rumbling and crashing sounds. He clambered out of bed, still not really awake and began to walk towards the window. Just then the door burst open and a soldier ran in.

"Captain, you must hurry, we are attack!" He called out before screaming as a large rock, obviously from a catapult blasted through the wall and crushed him.

Link was wide awake and alert now and saw, to his dismay that his armour had been destroyed by the rock. He quickly pulled on a shirt and grabbed his sword, tying it to his belt. He dove into a corner of the room just in time as another rock hit his room, bringing down part of the ceiling and crushing the bed he had been in only minutes before.

'_What's going on here, who is attacking us?'_ He thought frantically as he noticed the door was blocked.

Left with no choice he hurried to the gaping hole in his wall and leapt out, landing on the second defensive wall and scrambling to his feet. He saw several soldiers running around, shepherding citizens towards the caste.

"What's going on, who is attacking?!" He called out to one of them, the soldier stopped and answered, "We don't know, but the army is like none I've ever seen. I don't know how much longer we can last."

"They're attacking the gates?"

"Yes Captain, Master Redguard is there leading the defense, he is trying to buy us time while we get the citizens into the Sanctuary and to safety." The soldier replied, Link was worried however, "What about the Royal Family?"

"Your friend Lynia has led Her Majesty Queen Cordelia to safety. King Dynast refuses to leave before he knows his people are safe, we are still trying to find the Princess."

"Okay, I won't delay you any further, go; I will aid the defense of the main gate." Link replied and the soldier left as Link began to head for the main gate.

After working his way through the crowd and dodging rubble Link finally arrived at the main gate. Dooram was already there in full armour with his sword at the ready; he saw Link and immediately looked relieved.

"Link, about time you got here!" He called out, Link approached, "Just who is attacking us?"

Dooram gestured out onto the battlefield. Link gasped, all the attackers were inhuman, monsters of varying shapes and sizes, yet they seemed to be organizing into a proper army.

"How is this possible?" Link gasped, Dooram pointed again, "Might have something to do with those two."

He gestured to two hooded figures on horseback and Link froze, they were identical to the figures from his dream.

'_Lynia was right, a great evil, this is it.'_

"Link!" Dooram yelled; Link turned to him, "We're trying to take out their catapults and siege towers. Our archers are already taking care of the battering rams and ladders."

Link nodded and immediately manned the second trebuchet. He lined up carefully and launched the rock; it flew through the air and smashed into the catapult he had aimed at, causing it to collapse. Next he aimed at the base of a siege tower that was getting too close for comfort. The rock smashed through the bottom, damaging the supports and causing it to collapse. The battle continued to rage with neither side gaining an advantage.

"It doesn't seem to matter how many we take down!" Link called out to Dooram, "It's as if the siege engines are repairing themselves!"

Dooram just growled when suddenly, a winged monster flew over the walls and grabbed the man in charge of the other trebuchet. It carried him over the wall and dropped him before being shot down by the arrows.

"Link, take over that trebuchet!" Dooram shouted, "I'll work with the first one."

Link nodded and immediately took position and continued his defensive measures. Sadly however, a few minutes later two catapults fired their rocks and Link and Dooram had to dive for cover as the trebuchets were smashed to pieces.

"Damn, we can no longer hold the outer wall!" Dooram growled, "Everyone, fall back, we must continue to defend until all the citizens are safe, fall back to the second wall!"

They did so, moving quickly and maintaining their guard. The citizens who lived in the district behind the first wall had all been moved beyond the second wall. So it was only the soldiers that were in the first district. As the monsters attacking them broke down the main gates and the winged ones flew over the walls the knights readied themselves for the charge. Almost as soon as the battle began the disadvantage for the knights was obvious, but they bravely held out until Dooram received word and called out.

"Let's go, the last of the citizens is inside the castle," he called out to Link and his remaining men, "We must hurry and defend the castle gates until they make it to sanctuary, now fall back!"

They hurried to do so, closing the second gate behind them to buy themselves some time.

When they reached the castle gates they saw King Dynast standing there.

"Captain Hylias, Master Redguard!" He greeted them, Link was aghast, "Your Majesty, you should be getting to safety!"

Dynast shook his head.

"No…These monsters attacked my castle. I will show them, there is still strength left in the Hyrule Family."

Dooram offered no complaint, much to Link's chagrin. They assumed a ready position and waited as suddenly the second gate was blasted down. The monsters charged in and then assembled. The two horsemen rode to the front and stopped a few feet away from the defenders. It was then Link got a good look at them, the first figure was wearing a black hooded cloak over what looked like Hylian armour and was armed with a Hylian sword. The second figure was more menacing, he was dressed in black armour with a red cloak and a black hood which was pulled up shrouding his face, he was carrying a large golden sword which glowed with a powerful light. It was clear that this man could use magic and that it was he who blasted the gates down and also repaired the siege engines that were attacking the castle. The first figure lowered his hood and revealed his identity as he smirked and spoke.

"Well now, I never imagined attacking this castle would be so easy." Phillipe stated, Dynast glared at him and levelled his sword at him, "Akatosh, you would dare betray us like this!"

"You betrayed me you fool!" Phillipe bellowed, "Zelda is mine by right, not this common trash!" He gestured to Dooram, "You have constantly frustrated my attempts to claim my rightful bride but no more!"

"You!" Link bellowed as he charged, prepared to cut Phillipe down.

Before he could however the second figure raised his hand and Link struck an invisible barrier and was sent flying back. When he looked up he saw the back of the figures right hand. On it was a glowing symbol of three connected triangles; the topmost triangle was glowing brighter than the other two. Suddenly Link felt a sure of power in his hand and looked down. The same symbol had appeared on his hand, except it was the left triangle that was glowing brighter. The figure gave a dark laugh.

"I see," He stated in a deep, dark voice, "So you are the one…Well, this gets interesting."

With that he lowered his hood and revealed himself.

The tall figure was now revealed; he had medium length slicked back red hair and a red chin curtain beard that connected with his hair at the sideburns. His skin was a shade of dark green and his hazel eyes radiated with pure malice. All the soldiers, except Dooram, Link and Dynast, dropped their weapons and began cowering in panic. Dooram and Dynast stared in shock and terror.

"It cannot be…him?!" Dooram breathed as Dynast glared at Phillipe, "You fool! Don't you realize what you've done!?"

Phillipe laughed, "Oh I know what I've done, I've gained the most powerful ally ever."

Link shook his head, "What is going on, who is this guy?" Dooram turned his gaze to Link, "You know Hyrule's history, take a good look at him, if you can bare it."

Link looked hard at the man, resisted the waves of malice that crept upon him by holding his gaze. It was then he realized, to his horror, who was standing before him.

"It cannot be…It's…" He gasped and choked but then finally found his voice again, naming the great evil before him, "…Ganondorf!"

Ganondorf laughed a dark humourless laugh.

"I see my name still has meaning in Hyrule" He remarked, "Well boy, I cannot allow you to interfere…not yet."

"What, what are you…?"

Link never finished his sentence for Ganondorf then cast a spell and Link was engulfed in white light and teleported away from the battlefield, blacking out in the process.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, so Ganondorf is back. Read and review please.


	6. Sanctuary

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Wolfgirl77769: I see you like this too, thanks :)  
MasterMind 16X: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it :)**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**Sanctuary**

When Link awoke it was to find himself in a rustic looking hut, lying in a bed which was set in a corner of the room. He then noted a tray with food and water on it on a small table next to the bed. Just then he heard a noise and looked up. Standing in the doorway was a young girl, who looked to have just entered her teens. She was rather skinny and was slightly shorter than average with shoulder length brown hair and brown eyes. She walked over to him and stumbled over her own feet. Link tried to get out of bed to help her but she quickly leapt up and shook her head.

"You should stay put, rest." She said cheerfully, "You were pretty beat up when we found you."

It was then Link realized he was shirtless and covered in bandages in several areas. He was also now aware of just how stiff his body felt.

"How…How long was I out?" He asked curiously, the girl smiled, "Four days, we were worried but…it's a relief to see you awake."

"We?"

The girl started and then turned and ran out of the building, calling out.

"Father, father, he's awake!"

Moments later she returned with another person. The figure that came in with the girl was a tall man with a slightly stooped frame with a toned build. He had short slicked back white hair, a short white goatee beard and brown eyes. He was clad, like the girl in simple, forest green commoner clothing. His face was creased with countless wrinkles and it was clear he was ancient beyond reckoning.

The old man stepped up next to the bed and examined Link minutely.

"How do you feel, boy?" He asked, his voice was low and gravely. Link replied honestly, "I'm fine, a little stiff but okay."

The man nodded; finally Link couldn't wait anymore and blurted out.

"Where am I, who are you guys?" The old man smiled, "Forgive me, I should have known you'd be shocked by all of this, having lived a sheltered life in the Castle."

The old man cleared his throat and continued.

"I am Rodolf Ferinas, this is my daughter Svari." He stated, gesturing to her. "You are in a forest settlement that once, over a hundred years ago, was home to the peace loving Kokiri race."

Link was surprised; he was in the southern forest.

"How did I end up here?" He asked, Svari replied, "I was out in the flower grove just outside the forest; you just appeared out of nowhere all beat up, where did you come from?"

"Svari, we will get our answers later, right now the boy's welfare is what matters." Rodolf stated before turning to him. "You were injured so we did what we could for you. Now, we both have questions for each other, but it would be better to do this out in the fresh air. We've left a change of clean clothes for you, put them on and join us outside."

With such a forceful personality it was clear the old man was anxious to start questioning him. So, after they left Link quickly got out of bed and got dressed, his clothes were simple forest green hemp but they fit well enough. He followed the two outside, hoping to get some answers.

He was amazed at what he saw when he stepped outside. He was indeed within the forest, in what looked like a small village with wooden huts that were similar to the one he had just exited. All the people were dressed simply and all had smiles on their faces as they worked away at tilling soil, planting seeds or gathering crops and farming livestock.

'_A simple life in rustic settings.'_ Link thought to himself, _'So different from the way things are in Hyrule Castle.'_

He spotted Rodolf and Svari standing near a tree stump which had smaller stumps around it. He hurried over to them and Rodolf indicated for him to sit on one of the smaller stumps while he sat down on another, Svari sat next to him, watching Link intently.

"So, young master, what is your name?" Rodolf asked, Link introduced himself, "I see, so you are the one."

"Huh, what are you talking about?" Link asked before Rodolf shook his head, "I will explain what I can later, then I will take you to one who can explain things better. First, let me see your hand, the left hand."

Still confused Link held out his hand. Rodolf pulled his hand closer and examined the back of it, the three triangles glowed again, the left one brighter than the others.

"As I thought."

"Look, what does this mean?" Link asked, Rodolf sighed, "It means that you have a great destiny before you. I will tell you more, but first I must take you to the person I spoke of."

With that Rodolf turned to Svari.

"Go and get his sword, then go help the villagers." Svari pouted, "But father, I want to come with you…"

"No, my daughter, it is too dangerous, I am even at risk."

Still pouting Svari hurried off to get Link's sword. Rodolf then turned back to Link.

"What I can tell you just now, is that I will be able to help you in your quest." He paused and then revealed, "For I am the Forest Sage."

Link was surprised at that, he had heard about the Great Sages and how they had brought down Ganondorf three hundred years ago.

"You are a descendent of one of the Great Sages?" He asked, Rodolf however shook his head, "No, I am one of the Great Sages, the last of them still alive."

Link stared in shock at this.

"But that's impossible; you'd have to be…"

"I have only recently celebrated my three-hundred and twenty second birthday." Rodolf remarked with a smile, "I watched over the people of this forest, first the Kokiri and then those that settled here after the Kokiri crossed the great sea to the lands of the undying."

"The last of the Great Sages, so the other Sages are descendents?" Link asked, Rodolf nodded, "Yes, The Light Sage is over one hundred years old; he is from the second generation of Sages, the ones which came after all the other Great Sages died. The current Sages are the young ones however, ones who have just awoken their power."

Link nodded, finally Svari returned with his sword, Link accepted it with a smile and thanked her, she smiled shyly and blushed before hurrying off to help the other villagers.

"Now, Link, come with me." Rodolf stated, "It is time you met with the Great Spirit of the Forest; Silva."

Link girt on his sword and followed Rodolf to the edge of the village where a fence along with a locked gate blocked the ext.

"This is one of only two exits from the village, the other leads to Hyrule Field, this one leads to where the Great Spirit of the Forest resides, the Sacred Grove. It is dangerous, monsters sometimes appear there, that is why you need your sword.

With that explanation Rodolf unlocked the gate and led Link out of the village, closing the gate behind them before they started down the path, to where Link's destiny would be revealed.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	7. Desperate Struggle

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story.

**Reviews**

**MasterMind 16X: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**Desperate Struggle**

As they walked down the path Link pondered on what had happened so far. The Castle had been besieged; he had no way of knowing the outcome of the battle unless he asked. He was concerned for his friends and the King. He was also confused about the three triangles symbol, what did it mean?

"Rodolf…" He began cautiously, the old sage nodded to indicate he had heard, "What became of Hyrule Castle?"

Rodolf sighed and after looking around to see if any monsters were close to attacking he turned to face Link.

"Hyrule Castle has been taken over by Phillipe Akatosh. He is now King of Hyrule and has forced Princess Zelda to be his bride, making her Queen."

"Then she didn't escape." Link realized, "What about the others?"

Rodolf gave a grim smile, "King Dynast Hyrule is dead." Link froze as he heard that, but Rodolf continued, "However, Queen Cordelia has survived, as has your friend Lynia Dolphness."

Link breathed a sigh of relief and then remembered something else.

"Wait, what about Dooram, Dooram Redguard?" He asked, Rodolf shook his head, "I cannot say, I don't even know if he is alive or dead."

Link nodded sadly, he knew Rodolf would not tell him about the symbol on his hand, not yet anyway. He had received answers to the fates of his friends; all he could do now, is keep going forwards.

As they walked however they heard rustling sound and grotesque grunts.

"Moblins." Rodolf stated.

Sure enough a group of four Moblins came out of the bushes, grunting and laughing amongst themselves as they eyed Link and Rodolf, fresh prey in their eyes. At least three of them were armed with spears, the fourth was armed with a short sword and a shield that was rather small for it, but would suit Link's stature perfectly. Link luckily had fought Moblins before and knew their weaknesses, so when the three spear wielders attempted to attack he dodged the attack. By pure luck his rapid change of position had caused all three to collide with each other. Using this to his advantage he used his sword to attack all three of them from behind until they couldn't take anymore and fled.

"One more." He stated as he faced down the sword wielder.

Seeing its comrades beaten however had shattered its confidence and it moved slowly, uncertainly. Link smirked at this and moved to attack, in a panic the Moblin fled, leaving its shield behind. Link picked up the shield and strapped it onto his back, along with his sword sheath.

"There." He remarked happily, Rodolf shook his head, "Don't get complacent Link…The Moblins of the forest are nothing compared to other Moblins, or even other monsters."

Link nodded solemnly and continued to follow Rodolf. Finally, after a long trek they arrived at the Sacred Grove of Silva.

Something seemed wrong however, they were in the Grove which resembled a large meadow surrounded with trees. But things seemed strangely…lifeless.

"The trees are restless." Rodolf stated, "The plants, the very soil itself…Something has disturbed the harmony of this place and until it is destroyed, Silva will not appear."

They looked around, trying to determine the source of the disturbance. As they looked there was a sudden rumbling sound and what appeared to be a large mound with grass and moss growing on it suddenly came to life. It stood up to full height and revealed itself to be some sort of Golem with the very earth itself being used to shape it as well as the moss and grass covering it's body.

"What is this?!" Link gasped surprised, Rodolf was also shocked, "It can't be, the Forest Titan."

The Forest Titan roared and suddenly pulled up a large boulder which it hurled at Link. He swiftly avoided it and, along with Rodolf took cover at the entrance to the Grove.

"I cannot aid you Link, even my magic can't stop this, but you have the courage to deal with this." Rodolf stated, "If you truly are who I think you are. Listen very carefully. There are dark crystals which give power and life to these beasts, this one has five. Two on the back of his hands, two on the back of his shoulders and one on top of his head. Destroy them; it's the only way to kill it."

Link nodded and then, drawing his sword and shield he stepped back out, ready to fight.

The Forest Titan saw Link and roared, but Link was undaunted, he charged immediately and dodged the rocks thrown at him as he closed the gap between himself and his enemy. The Forest Titan punched the ground in an effort to flatten Link but missed. Link saw his chance and ran up and grabbed the Forest Titan's trapped hand and began to climb up the hand to reach the crystal which was set at the wrist. By the time he reached it the Titan had pulled its hand free and was startled to see Link hanging on to it. Link used this distraction to use his sword to pummel the crystal and eventually break it. The Titan roared in pain and tried to squash Link with its other hand, He used this to his advantage and grabbed onto one of the fingers. As it brought its arm away from its crushing attempt Link swung himself up onto the hand and pulled himself up to the wrist, he managed to attack the crystal several times but then the enraged beast tried to crush him again. He rolled out of the way and held on for dear life as the attack just missed, he then pulled himself back up and destroyed the second crystal. The beast roared in agony as Link ran up its arm and made it to the shoulder. Hanging from the shoulder he used the cracks and crevices in the earth which made up the Titan's body to reach the left shoulder blade and the third crystal. The Titan was surprised by link's sudden disappearance and began looking around for him. It soon found him when he smashed the third crystal. The monster roared and began to try and throw him off. Link knew there was no way he could make it across the gap to the fourth crystal, but then he had an idea. He used his shield as a stepping stone, wedging it in the Titan's back and attacked the crystal from there, finally shattering it. But then the beast roared and released a torrent of energy that blast Link off its back and he landed hard next to where Rodolf was hiding.

Rodolf helped Link to his feet.

"You've almost beaten it, it's enraged now." He stated plainly, "He's trying to use the forest against you, but I can counteract this and turn the forest against it."

Link nodded in agreement and, after regarding the now sorry state of his shield he prepared for the final attack. Rodolf used his magic to make some of the vines, which had been attacking anything in sight since the Titan got enraged, to entangle the Titan and immobilize it. Link then used the vines as a bridge and made his way up to the head. After attacking it several times he destroyed the crystal and leapt off the Titan as the vines released it and it flailed wildly before finally falling to the ground and crumbling back into the earth.

"Excellent Link." Rodolf stated, "Now, let us go, Silva awaits us."

With that Rodolf led Link to the centre of the meadow, ready to meet with the Great Spirit of the Forest.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	8. A Piece of the Past

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**MasterMind 16X: Thanks, glad you are enjoying it, glad you liked the boss fight.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**A Piece of the Past**

Link followed Rodolf as they approached a small spring at the back of the meadow. Life seemed to have returned to the area; with such speed Link was surprised.

"With the Forest Titan dead it can no longer leech the life out of this place." Rodolf explained, "All the energy it stole has been returned instantly."

Link nodded and stopped alongside Rodolf at the edge of the spring. Rodolf knelt down and clasped his hands together.

"Almighty spirit of the Forest, I bring before you the 'Hero of Courage'." He intoned, "We await your guidance."

With that he stood up as from the spring emerged a burst of light. The light began to coalesce and took form of a woman. Once the female figure fully emerged from the spring she stood on top of the water. The glow of light disappeared. And Link could finally see her. The woman had ankle length forest green hair and similar coloured eyes. She was clad in a dress of the same colour and barefoot. She walked slowly over the water's surface. She stopped at the edge and looked over both Rodolf and Link, her gaze stopped on Link.

Finally, after observing Link closely she spoke.

"Welcome, Hero of Courage, I am Silva...Spirit of the Forest." She stated, her voice echoing as she spoke. "I am relieved to welcome you here."

Link was confused. "What do you mean, Hero of Courage?"

Silva shook her head slowly.

"You are chosen, by the Triforce of Courage."

"Triforce? I always thought that was a myth." Link stated, Silva replied, "It is no myth. The Triforce is the very symbol of balance for Hyrule. It has also been the bane of Hyrule for the past three centuries."

Silva paused momentarily, and then with a heavy sigh she continued.

"Three centuries ago, Ganondorf Dragmire sought to use the Triforce for his own purpose. But when he touched it he was driven mad with power and left with only one of the three parts, the Triforce of Power."

Silva looked over at Rodolf and he nodded and spoke.

"Yes, once that happened the other two parts went to the Hero of Time and the Princess, both called Link and Zelda. After their victory over Ganondorf and the Ancient Sages, including myself, sealed him away, all descendents of those two shared their names."

Link gaped, amazed at this.

"So, you're saying I'm...a descendent of the Hero of Time?"

Silva nodded.

"Yes, you have inherited the Triforce of Courage from him, much like your ancestors. It is therefore your destiny to battle Ganondorf and attempt to put an end to his madness again."

"Again?"

Rodolf explained, "Ganondorf's body was sealed away but his spirit kept coming back to confront the descendents, he was beaten every time but seems to be trapped in an infinite cycle."

"Things have changed however," Silva stated, "His body and spirit have been reunited, he is stronger than ever, you will need the help of the other spirits."

Link nodded, he knew he had no choice in the matter; it was his duty as a knight of Hyrule to protect the land, especially from threats like this.

He nodded.

"Okay, I'll do it. I must do this, to save Hyrule."

Silva smiled and nodded before raising her arms.

"Then I will imbue you with two gifts." She stated, "The first is a blessing bestowed by the Forest, it is held in a crystal vial which will only be possible to open when it is most needed."

With that the vial appeared in her hands and she handed it over to Link.

"This is my personal blessing; you will know when to use it. The second gift is the green tunic of the Hero, a mystical garb that will augment your abilities."

There was a flash of light and Link's clothes were replaced with said tunic.

"You may return to the village." Silva stated, Rodolf will direct you to your next destination. I wish you well, Hero of Courage, the fate of the world, depends upon you."

With those words Silva disappeared and, at Rodolf's instruction, they turned and left the grove, heading back the forest village.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	9. The Journey Begins

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**MasterMind 16X: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it.  
xaonrider: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or it's characters.

* * *

**The Journey Begins**

Finally they arrived back at the village. Svari spotted them and came rushing over to them.

"Hey!" She called out cheerfully. Rodolf smiled and nodded. "Svari, I think it's time we headed home, it's dinner time."

Svari nodded with enthusiasm and along with her father and Link they headed back to Rodolf's home. Once inside and with their meal already cooked they sat down to eat, as they did so Svari kept trying to make eye contact with Link. But every time she did she looked and blushed. Rodolf was silent for a moment before finally he spoke.

"It would be best if you were to leave tomorrow." He explained, "You have a lot of ground to cover, you need to go to Kakariko Village, from there you can go to Death Mountain, home of the Gorons."

Link nearly choked on his food when he heard this.

"Link?" Svari asked, concerned. Link raised his hand, "I'm fine. The Goron's? Surely you know what they're like about outsiders."

Rodolf nodded, "Yes, but if you tell them your quest, and show them that mark on your hand, they'll understand. The Sage of Fire is a Goron; he is the one you must seek."

Link nodded in understanding.

"Okay, once I see him, what then?" He asked, "You must let him know why you have come, he will likely have a task that you need to complete, do so and you should meet with the Great Fire Spirit." Rodolf explained.

Link nodded, it was agreed for him to set out first thing tomorrow, Rodolf offered to get him a horse and, with transport worries taken care of Link slept easier that night.

The following day Link dressed in the tunic of the hero and strapped on his sword. He made a mental note purchase a new shield when he could; Rodolf had given him a wallet filled with Rupees especially for that purpose. He headed out of the hut and found Svari working in the garden. She looked up and smiled brightly when she saw him.

"Hey Link." She greeted, he smiled and nodded to her. "Hi, where's Rodolf?"

"Father's gone to the stables over there to get you a horse." She informed him, pointing at the largest building in the village.

Link thanked her and headed over to the building, Svari, having just finished her work, followed him. When they entered the stables they found Rodolf and stable master busy trying to saddle one of the horses. Rodolf spotted Link and beckoned him over.

"Link, glad to see you're ready, I'm sorry about the delay, this is the only horse available, she's a little spirited."

Link turned his attention to the horse. The horse was a mare with flaxen hair along with a white mane and tail. Her eyes blazed as she reared and resisted all attempts to saddle her.

"What's her name?" Link asked; the stable master was the one who answered, "Epona."

Link nodded; due to him spending a good deal of time as a child, caring for the Cavalry horses in Hyrule Castle he had experience with horses.

"Do you mind if I try?" He asked the stable master, the man sighed and stepped back, "Good luck."

Link stepped forwards, the horse stood still, watching him carefully. Unlike the stable master he didn't pick up the saddle. Instead he approached the horse and gently stroked her neck.

"Epona." He whispered; she fixed her gaze on him.

Slowly, cautiously Link spoke and slowly gained Epona's trust, finally, he picked up the saddle and Epona allowed him to saddle her.

"There."

Rodolf smiled as the stable master stared in awe.

"We have been trying for years to tame her, how did you do it?" He asked, Link sighed, "I didn't actually tame her, I gained her trust, she'll accept me, it's a link we've formed now."

"Incredible."

Link smiled and led Epona out of the stable, Rodolf and the stable master followed him.

Link and Epona stopped at the village gate; Link fastened everything he would to himself and to the saddlebags. Finally ready he mounted the horse. Svari came rushing over and held out something, Link took it gently and saw it was a bracelet of woven leaves.

"It's a special bracelet in our village, handmade." She explained, blushing as she spoke. "I thought maybe you could have it, for good luck."

Link smiled at that and put it on. "Thank you Svari."

Rodolf stepped forwards.

"Farewell Link, we shall remain here for now, but…when the time comes, we shall leave and join you." He explained, "I can assure you, things will erupt into a war, but we will be ready."

Link nodded and, with a final look back at the village and a wave goodbye, he rode off through the village gate and out to Hyrule Field, ready to begin his journey.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	10. Across the Fields

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**grandshadowseal: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it.  
MasterMind 16X: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it.  
Kyle: Well, wouldn't know anything about that.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**Across the Fields**

Link rode along the wide open grasslands of Hyrule Field. The raw untouched beauty of the field stood out in the bright sunlight. There was hardly a cloud in the sky and Link felt overjoyed that he could call this land home. He cringed at the thought of what would happen to it if Ganondorf used Philippe to expand his influence to consume the whole land. As he rode he saw a travelling merchant caravan, they had stopped by the roadside for a short rest. Link rode up to them and dismounted. They watched him cautiously. Link smiled as he approached them.

"Greetings traveller." One of them stated, Link nodded, "Greetings, I was hoping you could help me."

The merchant smiled.

"We aim to please, traveller. What do you need?"

"I was hoping to purchase a good shield." Link explained, "I also need directions to Kakariko Village."

The merchant smiled and, after accepting Link's payment he gave him a decent sturdy shield and then gave him the directions.

"Just head northwest from here; there are a good few signposts around." He explained, "Just follow them, the path should take you right there."

"Thank you." Link replied happily.

He strapped on his new shield and remounted Epona; he then rode in the direction he had been given, heading for Kakariko.

As he rode he pondered on the fates of Dooram and Lynia. While he knew Lynia was alive, he had no idea where she was. Dooram's fate was unknown.

'_I hope he's okay...' _Link thought, concerned for his old friend. _'I just hope Ganondorf didn't somehow kill him.'_

Link's thoughts were interrupted however by screams of terror. He rode forwards, drawing his sword and pulling out his shield as he did so. As he rode onward he spotted another merchant caravan, it was under attacks by tall skeletal warriors, known as Stalfos. Link rode forwards quickly as they began to approach the helpless merchants. He quickly severed the head off the first Stalfos. The Stalfos, taken by surprise, fell dead. However the other two were now alert and would me much more difficult targets. One of the Stalfos attempted to attack Epona but she reacted quickly and kicked the skeletal warrior, sending it off balance. Using this to his advantage Link crossed blades with the second Stalfos, blocking its strike. He then used as much strength as he could to unblade his opponent. The sword flew out of its grip and embedded itself in the ribcage of the other Stalfos. It looked surprised at the sudden intrusion and Link swiftly beheaded both of them, killing them. He sheathed his sword and shield and breathed a sigh of relief.

He paused to catch his breath and then turned to the merchants.

"Are any of you hurt?" He asked; the head merchant of the group spoke. "No we're fine, thank you. You've done us a great kindness young man."

Link nodded.

"Now might not be the safest time to be making your journey." He commented.

The head merchant shook his head, "We have to make it now, otherwise we'll end up with no money. Young man, I have a favour to ask of you."

Link nodded and the man continued.

"Would you kindly escort us to our destination? That way we don't have to worry about being attacked again."

"I wish I could but, I have to hurry, I'm on an important quest and I need to get to Kakariko." The head merchant smiled, "But that is our destination, we are on our way to Kakariko too."

"Well then it's settled, let's get going."

The merchants agreed and soon they set off. They rode in silence for a while and then finally the head merchant spoke.

"What is your name young man?" Link replied, "Link Hylias."

"I see, well Link, I cannot thank you enough for saving us, if you ever need any help, just ask me, we'll be staying in Kakariko for quite some time."

Link smiled and thanked him and they rode on. Apart from two bandit attacks which were easily repelled they ran into no more danger. They continued to ride in silence as Link thought to himself.

'_It's very unusual to see Stalfos out here; so far from their natural habitat...I guess Ganondorf's magic is causing all of this.'_

Finally he broke out of his thoughts as one of the merchants pointed out that they were nearing Kakariko, the sun was setting and it was nearly night time, but he had made it, now all he needed to do was find a place to spend the night and then, tomorrow he could start gathering information about Death Mountain and finds a means to reach the home of the reclusive Goron's.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	11. Simple Lives in Kakariko

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter in my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**grandshadowseal: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it.  
MasterMind 16X: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**Simple Lives in Kakariko**

Once Link and the caravan entered Kakariko the merchants thanked him and even paid him for his help. Link insisted that he didn't want any money but they gave him it anyway. Once that was done they left and headed to a medium sized wooden building near the back of town. Link looked around, the sun had almost set and there was hardly anybody around. He decided he would find a place to stay for the night and then he would ask around town the following day in order to find out more about Death Mountain. After talking to the stable owner and giving Epona a stall to stay in and rest for the night he headed out and looked around and finally spotted someone, he hurried over.

"Excuse me." He called out; the man turned around and smiled, "Hello there young man, how can I help you?"

"I'm a traveller, I've only just arrived here, I'm looking for an inn to stay the night." Link explained, the man smiled, "You're in luck young man, I happen to own the best inn here, follow me."

Link smiled at his luck and followed the man to his inn. Once there Link paid the man the price he asked for and was shown to his room. He settled in for the night, relieved to have finally made it to Kakariko.

The following day Link was up early, he headed downstairs and while eating breakfast he decided to talk to innkeeper.

"I was wondering…I need to head up Death Mountain." He stated, "Is there anything I need to be aware about?"

The innkeeper looked at him surprised.

"Death Mountain? What do you want to go there for?" He asked, Link sighed.

"I have important business there."

The innkeeper shook his head and sighed.

"I don't know much myself." He admitted, "But the Goron's that live there are very territorial, not to mention the monsters."

Link sighed. "All the same, I've gotta go up there." Seeing his determination the innkeeper nodded.

"Very well, the best advice I can give is to ask around town. Some people might not simply tell you what you wanna know, but if you help them with a few tasks they might make small talk about it."

Link thanks the innkeeper for his advice and, after making sure he had paid in full he left the inn, heading out into the village.

He began asking around, most people told him about the dangers of the mountain which ranged from the territorial Goron's, the monsters and the mountain itself which was prone to small eruptions. As he walked past a small farm he heard what sounded like an argument, he stopped and listened.

"Anju, what the hell is taking so long?" A man voice bellowed, a soft female voice replied.

"I'm sorry, I…" The man's voice cut across hers.

"I told you to round those Cuccos up an hour ago," The man audibly let out an exasperated sound before adding, "Now hurry it up."

With that a young woman stepped out of the barn, she was dressed in simple clothes and had shoulder length dark red hair and blue eyes. She looked worried, Link hurried over to her.

"Hey, are you okay?" He asked, she jumped and stared wide-eyed at him, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

She shook her head, calming down.

"No, it's fine, you're not from around here, are you a traveller?"

Link nodded before asking her what was wrong. The woman sighed and then explained.

"I work here at the farm; my boss wants me to round the Cuccos up, but…" She hesitated and then continued, "I have allergies to them so I can't even touch them."

Link nodded sympathetically.

"I see, well, how about I help you?" Anju looked surprised, "What, oh no, I couldn't ask you to…"

"It's no trouble."

Anju smiled and thanked him and so Link began hunting down and rounding up the Cuccos.

As he worked he spoke to her about Death Mountain.

"You need to go up there?" She asked curiously, he nodded, "Well, there is only one path; it leads all the way up to the Goron City."

Link smiled.

"That's perfect." Anju nodded, "However, the dangers of the mountain, they're greater than ever. The monsters there, they've multiplied."

"Multiplied, really?" Link asked, Anju nodded, _'Hmmmm must be because of Ganondorf.'_

"I see, well, thanks for the warning." He stated, "Ah, here's the last one."

With that Link herded the last Cucco into the pen. Anju smiled and thanked him and gave him directions to the path that would take him to his destination. Satisfied he made sure he had everything he needed and then, after checking on Epona and ensuring she would be well looked after, he left the village and headed to the gate to Death Mountain, ready for the long climb that would take him to the city of the reclusive and territorial Gorons.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	12. Ascent up the Mountain

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**grandshadowseal: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, yeah, I always found them annoying too.  
MasterMind 16X: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or any of its characters.

* * *

**Ascent up the Mountain**

Link passed the gate which led up to the Death Mountain Trail. The tall mountain stretched up before him, the path had been carved through a small canyon in the rock of the mountain. Link knew the climb wouldn't be easy but still he had to continue onwards. He began the ascent, at first the path would be easy to traverse but from what he had heard about the mountain, as he got higher it would get steeper and rockier. Suddenly he drew his sword and shield; he heard a faint scuttling noise nearby. He walked forwards cautiously, the sound was getting louder. Acting on instinct he raised his shield just in time. Although he avoided the pincers the force of the blow knocked him backwards. He quickly scrambled to his feet, ready to fight. He had just been attacked by a swarm of Tektites. The one that had attacked him began to advance again. But this time Link was ready, as the Tektite leapt towards him, he slashed upwards with his sword, cutting the beast in half. More of the swarm moved in, Link reacted quickly cutting down another two and using his shield to ward off their attacks. Finally, realizing that he was outnumbered and that more might be coming, he took a chance. He cut down another and ran, further up the trail. The Tektites pursued him, leaping after him.

Link continued to run as fast as he could; however, sensing danger ahead he quickly took cover behind a group of nearby boulders. The Tektites came up to the location where he had disappeared from. However before they could act they were suddenly destroyed in a powerful magic blast. Link stared in disbelief at the smoking remains of the monsters and then finally saw the source of blast. It was Ganondorf. Link watched as the tall evil Gerudo walked casually over to the Tektite remains. He scrunched up his face in distaste and sighed.

"Meddlesome insects." He muttered before he began musing to himself. "Let's see, Phillipe still has the princess in the castle, that's one part of my plan taken care of."

Ganondorf glanced back the way he had come from.

"The Forest Titan has fallen, but not before doing what I needed it to do. The other Titan's are still wreaking havoc and falling into place with my plan. I have got what I needed from both the Forest and Fire Titan's now…" He paused and looked around, at one point even looking towards Link's hiding place, luckily he didn't see him.

"That just leaves the rest of the Titan's, the boy Link…and then, everything is in place."

Link was surprised at this, what did Ganondorf want with him? He then saw Ganondorf consulting something; it looked like an ancient tome. Link had seen it before, in Hyrule Castle's library. It had been sealed away behind a special barrier and it was clear that Ganondorf must have broken that barrier to get his hands on it, the question was, why? Ganondorf smirked and put the book away again before walking off. Link waited until he was sure he was gone before leaving his hiding place and continuing up the mountain.

As Link climbed he mused about what he had seen.

'_Ganondorf has something planned, it looks like, whatever is in that book, is what he was after. He only joined Phillipe's attack to get his hands on that book.'_ Link however was more confused than ever. _'But, what's so important about a book, and what does it have to with me, or Princess Zelda…How is it connected to those Titans.'_

Shaking his head Link continued to climb. Twice he was attacked by more Tektites, the rest of the swarm from earlier. He was able to defeat them and proceed onwards, now the mountain was becoming steeper and he could no longer walk up it. He began to climb over rocks, make careful jumps over crevices. He knew he was getting closer to the summit, he also knew, from what he had been told, that the Goron City was a little further down from the summit, so he was getting close. Just then he was interrupted by an ominous rumbling sound. Acting quickly he took cover underneath a large overhanging rock. He was just in time, no sooner had he taken cover before the eruption started.

"Geez, how do the Goron's live with this?" He wondered aloud.

As he watched the burning rocks rained down, exploding as they hit the mountainside, changing the terrain. The eruption lasted at least ten minutes before finally subsiding, the last rock struck the ground and finally it was over. The sky cleared up again and Link got out of his hiding place. He continued forwards, to a small cliff edge and climbed up. As soon as he reached the top he straightened up and found himself surrounded by a group of Gorons.

Link was surprised to see the Gorons standing before him. They were a race of muscular potbellied people with bronze skin and what appeared to be rocky formations growing on them, they each possessed purple eyes and all stood at least a head taller than Link. One of the Goron's approached him.

"Leave outsider." He spoke in a rough gravely voice. "You are not welcome here."

Link shook his head. "Please, just listen to me."

A second Goron spoke up, he sounded furious about something.

"The last time we let outsiders in here things went bad for us." He stated, "Now we're stuck with that beast and it's all the fault of the outsiders."

"Listen, please." Link pleaded with them. "My name is Link, Link Hylias, I've been sent here by the Forest Sage Rodolf. He told me to seek out the Fire Sage, the leader of the Gorons. I'm here to help you, I don't mean any trouble."

"How can we trust you outsider…"

"Look." Link cut across him, "Will this convince you."

He showed them his Triforce mark, they were shocked and immediately began talking amongst themselves, finally they turned back to him.

"Follow us."

The Gorons led him inside their city. Link was amazed at the place; it had been built within the living rock and was comprised mainly of carved tunnels and large cavernous chambers. There were various passages and tombs leading off from both the tunnels and chambers but the Goron's ignored them and led Link right to the very end of the main chamber where a smaller, but much grander chamber was located. It was handsomely furnished with stone furniture and many decorations. Sitting in a large stone throne was the biggest Goron Link had ever seen. He was at least seven feet tall, unlike the rest of his people his stone like body was made up of pure muscle with no potbelly at all. He possessed the same purple eyes are his people and, unlike them, possessed a mane of spiked back white hair. The Goron's began conversing with him in a strange, unfamiliar language, likely their natural tongue. Finally the Gorons left, leaving Link with the one that was obviously the leader as well as the Sage of Fire.

"Greetings Link." He said in a deep voice, "I am the Sage of Fire, Bagura Rockfort. So, Rodolf sent you here did he?"

Link nodded.

"That's right, I'm on a quest to stop Ganondorf and free this land from his evil."

"If that is how you think, you have no chance." Bagura said, "There is much more to this than meets the eye. Much more to Ganondorf."

"What do you mean?"

"You will find your answers it you are willing to help us. The Great Spirit of Fire will tell you more, but first you must free him."

"A Titan is attacking here too, right."

Bagura nodded and Link agreed to fight it. He knew now that at least some of the answers he sought would be found after he killed the Fire Titan.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	13. A Heated Battle

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zleda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**MasterMind 16X: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, yeah, I thnk you're right, thanks for pointing that out.  
grandshadowseal: All will eventually be revealed, all I will say is that Ganondorf's plan hinges heavily on what he has found in the book. I can't exactly say what Dark Link is, evil would be too strong but he's not good. He only has a small role anyway.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or it's characters.

* * *

**A Heated Battle**

Bagura regarded Link carefully for a moment before continuing.

"Let me see your sword and shield." He stated.

Link was confused but obliged. Bagura nodded and smiled.

"It is a good shield...But it won't help you in the crater...The heat there is extremely intense it would melt your shield. Your sword should be fine."

Link sighed.

"Great, so what am I going to do?" Bagura smiled, "We have a shield you could use, it would withstand the heat, I shall also grant you the ability to withstand the heat in the crater yourself, that will also protect your sword."

Bagura then called out to some of the other Goron's in the native tongue.

"Dai lai de Goron pingbi!"

A Goron came in carrying a shield that appeared to be made of thick scales. Link accepted it gratefully.

"This is the Goron shield." Bagura explained, "We made it out of the hides of our enemies the Dodongo's. You might run into a few in the crater, stay away from the mouths."

Link nodded and left his old shield behind and took the Goron shield. Bagura nodded and then continued.

"Now, stay still, I shall now grant you invulnerability to the heat." He explained.

Link nodded and waited as Bagura raised his arms and began to chant, again in the native tongue.

"Ting wo de weida jingshen, shouyu zhe ming nanzi de anquan tongdao he kang kushu!"

There was a flash of light and Link felt a burst of energy. Bagura then open a secret door in the back of the room.

"Okay, head through here, this will take you to the crater." He explained, "Be ready, there could be anything."

Link nodded and headed down through the passage to the scorching crater.

He finally arrived; the heat hit him hard but was remarkably not as intense as he feared. Bagura's spell had worked. He looked around, he was standing on a rock platform, he could see various other rock formations. The heat came from the vast pool of magma below the rocks. Even from where he was standing he could see a small group of three dinosaur like creatures, Dodongo's. It was then Link spotted something lying near the end of the passage. It was a bow and a quiver of arrows, deciding to take the risk he picked them up. He slung the quiver onto his back and moved until he could see the nearest Dodongo. He pulled an arrow out and notched it in the bow. He took careful aim and let the arrow fly. The arrow struck home, hitting the Dodongo just behind the eye. It roared in pain and fell dead. Due to the flames within it, it exploded. This damaged the two other Dodongo's who were nearby. Reacting on instinct they immediately began attacking each other. Soon a second one died and exploded.

"Perfect." Link whispered.

He took aim and fired again, the arrow also struck home. In its weakened state the shock of the arrow strike killed the Dodongo immediately. Satisfied Link sheathed the bow and leapt over the small gaps, using the rocks as stepping stones. He soon reached a large circular platform and looked around, trying to determine where he would go next. Suddenly the ground began to shake and the lava began to react violently.

'_What the, another eruption, no wait...?'_

Suddenly he got his answer, as out of the lava emerged a massive beast made of black rock, with several cracks in its skin, lava seeped from the cracks. The Fire Titan.

Link remembered what Rodolf had told him about the crystals and quickly looked for them. Luckily the Fire Titan was built like the Forest one, resembling a golem. Therefore the five crystals were in the same place. The back of the hands, the shoulders and the top of the head, however this one also had a crystal in its chest too.

"Okay, here we go." Link breathed, "Let's do, this, just gotta get to the crystals."

The Fire Titan roared; the heat from its breath was visible as it reared back and breathed fire directly at Link. Link rolled out of the way and took cover behind a nearby rock which blocked the fire. Link thought for a moment and then smiled, he had a plan.

"Hey, over here!" He called out as he readied his bow.

The Fire Titan turned towards him and growled. Link fired and struck the Titan right in the eye. It roared in pain and Link fired again, he struck the Titan, but missed the eye. The arrow fell down into the lava. Link growled and took aim again, he fired and this time struck. Now blinded the Titan howled and slammed its fist down. Link dodged the attack and leapt up onto the arm. He immediately got to work attacking the crystal. Finally breaking it he ran up the arm. Progress was difficult however due to the seeping lava from the cracks in the beast's skin. Finally however he reached and broke the crystal in the shoulder. He suddenly found himself being thrown off. He struggled back to his feet and saw his mistake. The Titan wasn't blind yet, it had four eyes, not two. He quickly dived out of the way of another fire attack and managed to take out the third eye. Suddenly it launched fireballs at him. Acting quickly Link raised his new shield. The fireballs struck the shield which miraculously held. Realizing his chance Link fired a second arrow and blinded the Titan before leaping up onto its left arm. He acted quickly, dodging the seeping lava and took out both crystals before climbing up and destroying the crystal on its head. The Titan flailed and Link realized the risks and leapt off it.

Link regained his footing and observed the last crystal. With the monster acting wildly he wouldn't get close to use his sword. He knew he only had one option. He sheathed his sword and shield and took careful aim with his bow. Trusting his instincts he fired and the arrow flew. The arrow pierced the crystal and shattered it. The Titan roared and howled and fell back into the lava, it slowly disintegrated, it was finally dead. Link breathed a sigh of relief. He sheathed his bow and looked around. Just then a glow of light caught his attention, from the light stepped a figure, a man with fiery red hair and black eyes. He was dressed in robes that appeared to be made of fire.

"Greetings Link." He stated, "I am Ignis, the Great Spirit of Fire. I thank you for releasing me, Hero of Courage."

Link nodded.

"I was sent here, to seek aid in stopping Ganondorf." Link explained, however to his surprise Ignis shook his head, "You do not understand yet Link, Ganondorf is not the true source of this evil."

"What, but, but he..."

"Ganondorf has a great role to play in Hyrule's destiny." Ignis explained, "One that depends on you and Zelda. However, he is not the greatest evil in this land."

Link couldn't believe what he was saying.

"So..." He began, confused, "Who is the greatest evil in the Hyrule then?"

Ignis sighed.

"The greatest evil is none other than the Demon King, Demise." He explained, "The great evil that you're earliest known ancestor defeated over a thousand years ago."

"Hold on." Link interjected, "Demise, but he's dead."

Ignis shook his head.

"He shall return, in this very age...In order to understand Demise, Ganondorf and the roles they play, you must know how they are connected." He explained, "You must seek out Aqua, the Water Spirit and the Sage of Water too. Bagura will point you in the right way."

Link thanked the spirit who nodded and faded away, Link now knew his next course. He turned to leave the crater, ready to speak to Bagura and find out where he was to go next.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	14. The New Direction

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter in my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**MasterMind 16X: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**The New Direction**

Link returned to the Goron City and found the Goron's standing waiting for him, all of them smiling.

"You have slain the Fire Titan?" One of them asked, Link nodded and they all cheered, "You have brought peace to our people, Link, hero of the Gorons!"

Link smiled and accepted their congratulations modestly and head to Bagura's chamber. Inside he found the Goron leader in good spirits.

"You have done well Link. Now my people are free and you've discovered that this goes much deeper than you originally thought."

Link nodded.

"Yes, what do you know about Demise?" He asked, Bagura sighed, "Not much I'm afraid, only that he was once a great evil Demon King. He also has some connection to Ganondorf."

Link sighed.

"So now what?" Link asked, "How am I supposed to find out more?"

Bagura pondered for a moment and then nodded.

"I understand. Let me think for a moment." He stated.

Link nodded and left Bagura to think while he headed back to the main city. He noticed all the Goron's were gathered in groups talking. One of them saw him and approached.

"Link, you have done better than we hoped." He stated; Link was confused by this. "What do you mean?"

"It turns out; by slaying the Titan you have liberated Death Mountain of those monsters that have plagued it." He explained, "We are free, free at last from the fear of the attacks that led us to mistrust outsiders."

Link smiled at this and after talking to some of the other Goron's he returned to Bagura's chamber.

Bagura looked up as he entered and nodded.

"I have thought long and hard, communed with Ignis...I have come to the conclusion that your answers lie with Aqua, the Great Spirit of Water. To meet with her you must head back to Kakariko and head south until you reach the river, follow the river until you reach the Zora's Domain."

"The Zora's...So I'll be meeting the Water Sage too." Link replied, Bagura nodded. "Yes. Now, I noticed that you were given the Seal of the Forest. Ignis has entrusted me to grant you the Seal of Fire too."

"The Seal of the Forest?"

"That phial you were given by Silva." Bagura explained, "Each of the Six Spirits either hold their elemental seal themselves, or entrust their Sage to do so."

Link nodded and Bagura granted him the Seal of Fire. Finally, after saying their farewells and promising aid when Link went to fight Ganondorf, the Gorons returned to work in their city and Link headed down the mountain.

True to what he had heard, the Tektites were gone; the monsters had disappeared from the mountain. All the same it still took him a while to climb down. It had been early evening when he entered the Goron City, he had spent some time there fighting the Titan and talking to Bagura. By the time he made it back down to Kakariko it was past midnight. He sighed; he would have to head for Zora's River at a more reasonable hour. He headed to the inn he had stayed at before; by sheer luck the innkeeper was still awake.

"Ah young man good to see you again." He remarked, "Did you climb the mountain?"

Link nodded, "Yeah, the Goron's were...more hospitable that I expected."

The innkeeper looked surprised.

"Really, well, you must have impressed them somehow and it's amazing that you made it past all those monsters."

Link shrugged and then changed the subject.

"I was hoping to get a room again." He explained, the innkeeper smiled and accepted Link's payment.

After they finished their exchange the innkeeper led Link to his room and left him. Link headed to bed for the night, ready to make an early start for Zora's River.

The following day Link awoke, he had a quick breakfast and, after paying in full, he left the inn. He began to head towards the stable but suddenly he stopped. He had noticed a figure acting furtively. They were mostly hidden under a black cloak. But his hood was down when Link looked he raised it. However he could have sworn that the figure was familiar. They had familiar looked dark skin and the hairstyle stood out.

'_Was that really...Dooram?'_ He wondered, _'I need to catch up.'_

He began to follow the hooded figure until they reached an abandoned section of town. The figure approached a dilapidated church and headed inside. Link hurried to catch up with him. He entered the church and stopped, he looked around, the figure had vanished.

'_But that's impossible...'_ Link mused, _'There's nowhere to hide in here, where could he have gone?'_

Link sighed. How could he have let the figure out of his sight? Finally he sighed, he would get nowhere like this, he couldn't be certain but from what he had seen, the figure definitely looked like Dooram. Deciding to at least satisfy himself with that he left and hurried back to the stables. He paid the stable owner and mounted Epona gain before guiding her out of the stables and out of the village. As he passed the farm he waved to Anju before riding back out into the Hyrule Field and prepared to head to his next destination, Zora's River.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	15. The Zora's Domain

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**grandshadowseal: Thanks, glad you enjoying it, good luck, hope it goes well.  
Mastermind 16X: That's okay, thanks, glad you enjoy it.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**The Zora's Domain**

Link continued to ride over the field, it wasn't long until he found the river and followed the path that the river flowed alongside. It soon became impossible to continue on horseback. Link sighed and dismounted from Epona; he looked around and then spotted some interestingly shaped grass. He then had an idea, he picked a piece up and blow into it, a whistling sound echoed from it. Epona turned her head towards the sound and Link smiled. He walked over and gently scratched her neck.

"I don't want to make you wait, go and exercise, do what you want to do." He said to her, "I'll make that sound again when I need you."

She gave a small snorting sounded and seemed to indicate she understood before she trotted off. Link turned and crossed over the narrow bridge that led to the other side of the river. He continued to head down the path, keeping an eye open for monsters along the way. As he wandered down the path he pondered on what he knew about the area and the locals.

'_The Zora's aren't as suspicious of outsiders as the Goron's are.'_ He thought to himself. _'They are rather reclusive however...I'm more worried about the monsters, a variant of the Tektite family is said to live here. Not to mention Octroks.'_

Even as he thought this a pair of Octroks leapt out of the water. Link immediately pulled out his shield, just in time to block the rocks they spat at him.

Link gritted his teeth; he knew if he got closer they would hide again. They spat rocks again and Link deflected them, he noted that the rocks bounced off his shield. He turned his shield slightly and one of the rocks bounced off it and struck the Octrok on the right. It gave a shriek and sank under the water, dead. Link smirked, his gamble had worked, he repeated the process with the second Octrok and finally killed it. Satisfied with this, he hurried onwards. He noticed a group of three blue Tektites. Realizing a chance to use stealth and avoid conflict he sheathed his sword and shield. He crept forwards, watching the Tektites carefully. He slipped through until he finally reached a small lake at the end of the river, fed by a waterfall. He looked around confused.

"Where do I go now?" He wondered aloud, suddenly a voice caught his attention.

"Soko horudo, bugai-sha."

Link turned and saw it was a Zora who had called to him in the race's native tongue. The Zora stepped forwards, like the rest of the race it was a tall blue skinned figure with fins and scales. The muscular structure and slightly darker colouring identified this Zora as male. The Zora looked Link up and down and spoke again.

"Anata wa koko de nani o shite iru no?" He asked, Link sighed, "I'm sorry, I don't understand."

The Zora nodded and switched languages.

"I'm sorry; I was asking you what you were doing here."

Link nodded.

"I'm here looking for the Zora's Domain, I need to seek your help."

The Zora regarded the young man suspiciously.

After a long pause the Zora seemed to make up his mind about something.

"Show me your hand." He stated, Link understood and held out his left arm, "Here."

The Zora observed the back of Link's hand and noted his Triforce Mark.

"So, you are indeed the Hero of Courage." He remarked, "Very well, just a moment."

He stepped over to the waterfall and spoke one word in Zora tongue.

"Hiraku!"

To Link's surprise the waterfall parted to reveal a small cave, the Zora then motioned for Link to follow him, Link did so and they entered the Zora's domain. Link gasped as they entered, they were standing in a large cavernous room, there were several stone walkways. At the lower levels there was a large pool, fed in by a waterfall that came from an unknown source. Link followed the Zora who led him over a few stone walkways. Zora's passed them, male and female, a few observed Link as they passed. They soon reached a large cavernous throne room, a Zora stood near the throne, he looked up when they approached.

"Yes?" He questioned, the Zora that brought Link stepped forwards, "The Hero of Courage is here."

The Zora turned to Link as the first left them together.

"So, you are the Hero of Courage." He stated, Link nodded, "I am here to see the Sage of Water."

The Zora sighed and shook his head.

"I'm afraid that is not possible. Prince Aquina has left for the Ice Caverns to see if he can determine why the monsters have increased."

Link noted that the Zora looked worried.

"What's wrong?" He asked, the Zora sighed, "He has been gone for some time. I am worried he has been hurt."

"I can go look for him if you want."

"If you could we would be eternally grateful, the Ice Caverns are hard to miss. Head through the passage behind the throne, you'll come out in Zora's Fountain, from there you will find the Ice Caverns."

Link thanked the Zora and then headed off, ready to save the Zora Prince.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	16. Curse of the Ice Caverns

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**Wolfgirl77769: Glad to hear from you again, sorry to head about your problems.  
grandshadowseal: He is younger than the other Zora's so his height will be different, as for other difference's, see the description below.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or it's characters.

* * *

**The Curse of the Ice Caverns**

Link soon emerged in Zora's Fountain, a body of water that looked more like a lake than a fountain. From where Link stood he could only see two points of interest. At the very back of the fountain there was a small land mass, upon which was a small pond, also, to the far left, midway through the fountain was a cave entrance. Link reasoned that this entrance must be the entrance to the Ice Caverns. He waded out and then swam over to the entrance; finally he reached it and pulled himself out of the water. He found that, likely due to the nature of his tunic, he dried rather quickly. Readying himself he headed into the Ice Caverns. Once inside he noted the frigid nature of the place. True to its name there was ice everywhere, on the walls, on the floor on the roof of the caves too. Snow was prevalent and so were stalagmites and stalactites. Link began to journey further in, moving slowly, taking great care on the ice. As he walked however he heard an ominous cracking sound and stopped dead in his tracks. Just ahead of him a stalactite came loose and fell to the ground. Piercing it and breaking in two, the pointed end lay flat on the ground while the top splintered and fell to pieces. Link shook his head and proceeded with even more caution. It was then he heard it, a loud breathing noise, he wondered what it could be. He soon got his answer as he arrived in a large chamber. In the middle of the chamber were three monsters he had read about in the Hyrule Castle Library.

'_Freezeards.'_ He noted _'Okay, gotta time this right.'_

He knew that if they exhaled on him he would be frozen solid. However in this case the ice worked to his advantage. Sliding on the ice he was propelled forwards and was able to hack away and completely destroy two of the Freezeards before damaging the third. He then had to dodge its breath and it regenerated but he regained his footing and finally finished it off.

Shaking his head at his narrow escape he turned and headed further into the caverns.

'_Freezeards, whatever next?'_ He wondered.

Just then however he heard something, it sounded like a voice, someone was calling for help. Being careful on the ice he followed the sound and soon found himself facing what looked like a cage that was made up of stalactites and stalagmites. He noted that whatever had happened looked recent. It was then he saw someone inside the makeshift cage, it was a Zora. The Zora was of medium height with silver and blue skin, black eyes and a slender build, the darker blue scales identified the Zora as male.

"Hey." Link called out, the Zora looked up and saw him before exclaiming, "Ten ni kansha shimasu!"

He straightened up and Link noticed that he was injured.

"What happened?" The Zora shook his head, "It's nothing, I've had worse. Who are you?"

"I'm Link Hylias, I've been sent to meet with each of the Sages to try and stop Ganondorf."

The Zora nodded. "Ah, I see, the Hero of Courage. I am the Sage of Water, Aquina Do Bon, Prince of the Zoras."

Link nodded, "Right, you're people are worried about you, I have to get you out of here."

Aquina nodded.

"There is a way to melt these, take this." He handed Link an empty glass bottle, "Over there, you see the blue fire; you can use the bottle to store some. Bring it over here."

Link was confused but followed Aquina's instructions. He returned the full bottle to Aquina who used it to melt the ice cage. He breathed a sigh of relief.

"Finally free, now, just a second." He stated and, with a brief chant he healed himself.

Aquina then stepped forwards.

"There, I know you probably want to send me back, but I cannot go back yet. I must go and see what is causing this."

Link nodded he could tell right away from the look in the Prince's eyes that any argument would be futile. So together they headed further into the cavern, killing any enemies they ran across, Aquina showing a rather adept flair for battle.

Soon they arrived in the final cavern, to their surprise there was already someone there. Link froze in shock, it was Ganondorf.

"You!" Link gasped, Ganondorf turned and smirked "Well, well, it seems like you've caught up with me."

"What are you doing here?"

"I was gathering the energy I needed from the Ice Titan…Just two more to go." Ganondorf stated.

"Hold it, what is going on here Ganondorf? What's in that book?" Link asked. Ganondorf laughed.

"Oh yes, the book, it won't be of any use to you, at least not now, not until you understand…everything about me."

Link was thrown by this but quickly recovered as Aquina spoke.

"So, you are the behind this, the monsters are increasing because of you." He stated, Link glared and drew his sword and shield. "I'm not letting you get away Ganondorf."

Ganondorf laughed again.

"You have bigger problems, like him."

As he said those words Ganondorf teleported away as the Ice Titan came to life. They both stared as the beast appeared. The ice itself taking shape as the six crystals that powered it pulsed with energy. Finally the ice took shape forming a much large ice version of a monster Link had also heard of in his knight studies, a Wolfos. The large overgrown wolf that was the Titan began to stalk towards them, Link readied his sword, to fight the Titan like the others but Aquina shook his head.

"No Link, that won't work this time." He stated, "You'll never get close to it, we'll have to run, use your bow, that'll pierce the Crystals and take them out. But it's not gonna be easy."

Link sighed and sheathed his weapons before pulling out his bow.

"Alright, let's go."

Aquina nodded and together they turned and ran back the way they came, the Titan chasing them.

It soon became clear why attacking with the bow would be a problem, even though it was the only way. The sheer size of the Titan meant that the caves began collapsing around it and stalactites and rocks fell from the roof making the running battle more about running than fighting. Soon however Link realized he could grasp an opportunity in the larger chambers and took time to aim and strike one of the crystals. Sure enough the piercing power of the arrows, guided by Link's strength as the Hero of Courage, shattered it. Aquina smirked.

"That's it, there are more chambers around, we have to lead it to each one and shatter the crystals, now c'mon!"

They hurried to the next chamber. On a few occasions Link unfortunately missed but quickly recovered in the next chamber. Adding to the difficulty of the battle was the fact they sometimes had to pass through passages that had already been destroyed, therefore climbing over rubble while being chased. Finally Link fired and destroyed the second last crystal; unfortunately the falling rubble knocked the bow out of his hands and broke it too. Link tossed off his quiver, snarling.

"Now what?" He asked as they ran, Aquina shook his head,

"I don't know, we have to get through the ice to pierce the one in his chest."

Finally they stopped, they had reached the exit of the caves, any further they'd put Zora's fountain, Hyrule's water supply in danger of contamination. They both turned and saw the Titan stop and growl. It looked ready to leap at them, Link however noticed something, right next to where he was standing was the first stalactite that he had seen fall. It was lying on its side, the pointed end pointing towards the Titan. He braced himself and waited. The Titan leapt and Link acted, he grabbed the stalactite and hefted it up, the Titan landed on it, piercing its chest and shattering its last crystal. It gave a howl before exploding into lifeless chunks of ice.

Tired and bruised from the battle they both left the Ice Caverns.

"Link, this way." Aquina stated.

Link followed as they headed over to the small island with the lagoon. Link then remembered, by killing the Titan he had freed the spirit, he was due to meet the Water Spirit. She appeared out of the water, a slender woman with flowing blue hair like a waterfall and light blue eyes. Her dress was like her hair making it seem as if she was wearing a waterfall.

"Greetings Link, I am relieved the Hero of Courage has come at last." She stated, "You must have questions but before you ask, you need not worry about the seal, I left it in Prince Aquina's possession. I feel however that Ganondorf is not seeking the seal, despite their power."

Link nodded.

"According to him, he is absorbing energy from the Titans, I'm not sure why."

Aqua sighed and Link continued.

"I do have one question, Ganondorf is back and is using the Titan's, but Ignis said he wasn't the real problem, that Demise was, but Demise is dead, how can he be a threat."

Aqua had a sad faraway look in her eyes before she replied.

"It is our worst fears come true. Ganondorf has finally become complete again, his spirit and his body reunited…That means that Demise will return from the dead too."

"But how?"

"They are connected," She stated, "Connected deeper than you think. The Anima, the Great Spirit herself…She knows the whole story, but the one who truly understands the connection between the two is Nox. The Great Spirit of Shadow is the one you must seek next."

Link nodded as he realized that, given Ganondorf's actions and the way things had been explained to him, Ganondorf would be headed for the Shadow Titan next. Aqua again thanked him and used her power to purify the Zora lands of monsters before fading away and Link followed Aquina back to Zora's Domain.

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End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	17. Reunion

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**Reunion**

Link and Aquina returned to Zora's Domain, the other Zora had gathered and were waiting for their return. The Zora Link had spoken to earlier approached them, relief clear on his face.

"Prince Aquina, Anata ga anzenda to ten ni kansha shimasu." He exclaimed, "Link we cannot thank you enough."

Link nodded as another Zora spoke up.

"Your Highness, all the monsters inhabiting the river have disappeared."

Aquina nodded.

"Yes I know, Link was able to destroy the Ice Titan and free Aqua, the Great Water Spirit, she has cleansed our lands of monsters." The other Zora were amazed and the one that appeared to be the advisor spoke.

"Link, it seems we have more to thank you for than just saving our Prince." He stated, "You have saved all of us, such a deed deserves a reward."

Aquina nodded.

"I agree, Aqua has indeed confirmed he is the Hero of Courage." He explained, "I know the perfect reward for him, grant him the Seal of Water."

"Your Highness?" The advisor gasped, but Aquina cut across him, "It is necessary for him to possess the Seal of Water, he already possesses the Seals of Fire and Forest. They are necessary for his quest."

The advisor agreed and presented Link with the Seal; Link took it gratefully and placed it in his pack with the other Seals, all carefully preserved. He then thanked the Zora's and spoke to Aquina again.

"I need to find the next Sage; do you have any ideas where I could find them?"

Aquina pondered for a moment. "Yes, you...you have to go back to Kakariko." Link groaned at this and Aquina continued, "You will find the Shadow Sage there, I must warn you she is a bit...irritable."

Link nodded and thanked the Zora for their help and hospitality and headed back out of the Domain, returning to the river.

Link smiled as he headed back through the river, the monsters were indeed gone. It began to look like Ganondorf and the Titan's were causing the monster population to increase and leech the land of life. With each one that was destroyed the monsters disappeared, falling back to their normal population levels and the life returned to the area that was free. Link however was pondering on a bigger problem, Demise. Could the Demon King possibly be returning and if so what did Ganondorf have to do with it? He soon stepped over the narrow bridge and was back on the open plain. He picked up the whistle grass and blew through it, the note sounded and sure enough Epona could soon be seen, trotting towards him. She stopped next to him and Link gently stroked her neck.

"Hey girl," He greeted with a smile, "Well, let's go, we're heading for the next Sage, we're going back to Kakariko."

Epona made a small snorting noise and Link nodded.

"Yeah, that's what I thought, let's go."

He mounted and they turned around and headed towards Kakariko. They rode casually as Link observed the Hyrule Field.

'_It's strange but from what I can see, this field and...Lake Hylia seems to be the only place that is safe. But that can't last long, I have to hurry.'_

He began to ride closer to Kakariko he suddenly stopped; coming down the small steps which led up to the village entrance was none other than Ganondorf.

'_He's already claimed the power of the Shadow Titan.'_ Link realized.

Surprisingly, if Ganondorf saw him he didn't react. Instead he simply walked over to where a large black horse with flaming red eyes was waiting and mounted it. He then rode off, heading west.

Link was wary as he rode up into Kakariko, luckily the village looked untouched, but it was clear that the Titan was active, the land appeared to losing its vitality. As he let Epona rest in the stable he began to walk towards the main square of the village. Suddenly he felt someone grasp his arm, Link turned and saw it was the hooded man he had seen last time he was in the village.

"So it was you." He stated, Link noticed that the voice was familiar. "This way, hurry."

Link was confused and wary but followed the hooded figure until they reached the deserted section of town, they stopped outside the church. The figure turned to face Link.

"I am glad to see you are alive, Link," He stated, "I've been worried."

He lowered the hood and revealed his appearance.

"Dooram, you are alive." Link gasped as his old friend smiled, "Yeah, I've been in hiding, trying to find a way to lower Phillipe's guard in order to try and reclaim the castle and rescue Zelda."

Link nodded and Dooram led him inside the church, he headed to the altar and after examining it for a while he pressed a hidden switch and the back wall opened to reveal a door.

"This way."

Link followed him, understanding now why he had lost sight of Dooram last time. They headed down the corridor, heading underground. They stopped at another door which Dooram opened and they headed inside.

They entered and saw a large group of people, soldiers that had survived Hyrule Castle, along with several others. Dooram explained that these people were part of a resistance movement against Phillipe. Link noticed that Bagura and Rodolf were present with their people, even Svari was there. She smiled shyly at him, however then Link stumbled as someone embraced him.

"Link, thank goodness you're alright!" It was Lynia, she stepped back, her relief clear.

"I'm fine Lynia, I'm glad to see you all made it to safety." He replied. He noted that Svari's expression had darkened but couldn't understand why.

Link explained to Dooram, Lynia and Cordelia about his quest and how he was faring so far. He also explained about how he had helped the Goron's and Zora's, the Goron's and Rodolf's people had already joined the resistance; the Zora's would be on their way to join soon. Link explained why he was in Kakariko.

"If you're looking for the Shadow Sage you're best waiting till tomorrow, it's late and she's likely to be asleep." Cordelia explained, "You are more than welcome to stay here."

"Thank you." Link replied.

He accepted their offer and was led to his own chambers, he lay down and breathed a sigh of relief, it was getting closer to the battle against Ganondorf, he would have to hurry if he was to have any success. His first task tomorrow was to find the Shadow Sage.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	18. In The Darkest Depths

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**grandshadowseal: Sadly I can't for three reasons. First it would make the story absurdly long and cause people to lose interest, secondly remember what Link noticed about life being leeched from the land, basically he's on a time limit. Lastly I can't think of any.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**In the Darkest Depths**

The following day Link awoke and after meeting with the other Resistance members he headed out to find the Shadow Sage. Following directions given to him by Bagura, Rodolf and Aquina he headed to her last known residence. His timing couldn't have been better, the moment he arrived she exited the house, at least, he was sure it was her.

"Excuse me, ma'am." He called out, she turned to him and he continued. "I'm looking for the Shadow Sage."

"You're looking at her." Was the reply.

The Shadow Sage was a tall slender woman with short silver hair and red eyes. She had a rather haughty expression as she observed Link.

"The name's Umbra, Umbra Shesun." She stated somewhat impatiently, "So what do you want?"

Link sighed; he could tell that Aquina's comment about her being irritable was true.

"I am the Hero of Courage, my name Link Hylias…" He began but Umbra cut him off.

"I get it now…well listen, I don't need your help okay." She stated, "I'll come find you later, right now, I have a job to do."

"But…Look I think I know where you are going; you can't possibly defeat that Titan by yourself."

"Don't go telling me what I can and can't do boy!" She snapped, "I'm wasting time here, I'll talk to you, later."

With that she turned and stalked off. Link knew he had no choice so, making sure she couldn't see him, he followed her.

Link cautiously followed Umbra, he was careful to avoid being seen when she looked over her shoulder. Before long they were out of the village and into a large graveyard. Link hid behind one of the headstones as Umbra looked around cautiously and then finally opened a rusted gate at the back of the graveyard. Once she was inside Link followed her again and slipped through the gate. He was shocked to discover that he was now inside a necropolis. Link had lost sight of Umbra and so he drew his sword and shield and began to walk cautiously through the city of the dead. Link was worried he was being watched, he kept feeling a presence looking over his shoulder. Every time he looked around however the presence disappeared. He plunged deeper into the necropolis until suddenly he heard a piercing scream, followed by another less piercing one which seemed to be cut off midway through. Link hurried forwards and soon found out what was going on. Umbra stood frozen, midway through preparing a spell. Her opponents made her paralysis reasonable. Redeads, emaciated corpses with wooden masks covering their faces but not blocking their sight which paralysed the victims. The masks also left their mouths uncovered so their deadly fangs were possible to use. Link then spotted two others, a total of three Redeads. Link moved slowly and cautiously as they approached Umbra. He leapt into action, impaling the nearest one through the back, he pulled his sword out. The second Redead spun and attempted to bite. Link warded it off with his shield and severed its head. Before he could react however the third stared right at him, paralysing him. It began to approach, salivating at the meal before it. Suddenly however Umbra unfroze and spun around blasting the Redead with her spell. Several shadow hands reached out of the ground and grabbed it before pulling it underground.

Umbra approached Link as the freezing effect wore off.

"You don't give up, do you?" She remarked. "Alright, maybe I'll accept your help, let's go."

Link nodded and followed Umbra as they approached a large building.

"This is the Ancient Crypt. My ancestors sealed the Shadow Titan in here." She explained, "Now it's awoken, it's not escaped the crypt yet but...It's caused those dead bodies to start wandering around, as if they've forgotten they're dead."

She then unsealed the door with a spell and they headed inside.

"Be careful, I know you've been fighting the other Titan's, this one won't be like any of the others."

Even as she said it Link realized he would be in for a more difficult battle. The Shadow Titan was already in front of them, above the altar at the end of the crypt. It was a fairly large creature made entirely of black fog. It had two large wings and only possessed three crystals, two for the shoulders and one on its head. However as the door closed and it saw the two of them it roared and suddenly up to five identical clones appeared next to it. Then suddenly, with a simple wave of its wings all the lights had gone out and they were plunged into complete darkness. Link gasped as he looked around, he was blind in the darkness.

"Link stay calm, if you panic you won't be able to focus." Umbra stated, "Stay calm and focus, or you'll never defeat the Titan."

Link readied himself and waited. He knew the Titan was moving but it didn't have footsteps, how could he possibly hear it. Suddenly he realized he could hear it, he could hear the ominous sounds of the wings moving, but was it the Titan, or one of the clones?

He listened carefully as he heard the beat of the wings getting closer to his right. Waiting for the right moment he struck out and caught the crystal on the right wing. But it was one of the clones as it dissipated when hit.

"Dammit." He growled, Umbra sighed, "Link, you're hearing, but you're not listening. They're focusing on you due to your status as the Hero of Courage. Listen very carefully, the real one sounds slightly different from the rest."

Link sighed and realized she was right, he listened very carefully and then heard it. There were five left, four pairs of wings all sounding the same and one sounding heavier. The heavier wings were the real one. He waited; he knew they would make an attack soon. This time it was the real one striking, Link braced himself and, when it collided with his shield he struck and shattered the ring wing crystal. The beast howled and tried to fly away. But Link held on tight to its neck and was able to shatter the left wing Crystal before being thrown off. He quickly recovered and rolled out of the way of attacks from the remaining clones, striking one in order to make it dissipate and make it easier to hear the real one. Umbra spoke again.

"Good, we're nearly there. However, if we want to hit the last crystal we'll have to destroy all the clones." She stated, "I'll help as best as I can, now let's go."

Link agreed and they prepared. With Umbra's spells holding them in place Link got to work eradicating the clones and then finally, with them gone and the Titan alone it made a final charge. Link acted quickly and struck, destroying the last crystal and destroying the Titan which disappeared in burst of black cloud, the light slowly returned to the room.

Link breathed a sigh of relief and sheathed his weapons. Umbra approached him.

"Very impressive," She remarked, "You truly have earned your title."

Link nodded, "Thanks I guess."

"Come, Nox is waiting for you."

Sure enough Nox, the Shadow Spirit emerged slowly from the altar. A tall black haired man with jet black eyes and clad in robes as black as night. Umbra led Link forwards as they head to the altar to meet the shadow spirit.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	19. Tensions

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**SupernalGodzilla: Thanks, glad you are enjoying it.  
grandshadowseal: Well, here it is, enjoy :)**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**Tensions**

Link followed Umbra up to the altar, approaching Nox. Finally they stopped and Nox addressed them.

"Welcome Umbra, welcome Hero of Courage." He intoned, "I must thank you for destroying that Titan, the previous three attempts failed but now I am free."

Umbra nodded sadly.

"Yes Link, there were three attempts before hand...Now Kakariko is safe...Apart from the castle, the only place in danger of a Titan attack now is the Gerudo Desert."

Link started at that.

"The Gerudos?" Umbra nodded again, "Yes, the Spirit Sage is a Gerudo; she is the one you must help next."

Link nodded.

"The land...is still being sapped of life." He noted, "This is...If I don't kill this last Titan, all that I've done so far will be for naught."

Nox then spoke. "Yes, you will also need the Shadow Seal, please, take it."

Now held out his arms and the Shadow Seal appeared between his hands. Link accepted it gratefully and then, remembering he asked.

"I was told...you might know something about the connection between Ganondorf and the return of Demise?"

Nox nodded in confirmation.

"Yes, Ganondorf is not as evil as he has been made out to be." Nox explained, "He was cursed from birth. Over a thousand years ago, one of your ancestors and Princess Zelda's ancestors defeated Demise. He was enraged and left a curse behind in his anger. When Ganondorf was born, the curse chose him to be the one that would plague the lives of the descendents of those who defeated Demise."

Link was shocked by this.

"So Ganondorf is...?" Nox continued, "Yes, when he claimed the Triforce of Power, Demise's curse struck him and he was forced into an infinite cycle. Even after his body was sealed his spirit continued to plague the descendants. Now his body and spirit is reunited...He is likely seeking to free himself of the curse."

"Of course, that book in Hyrule Castle library. That's what Ganondorf is after; he's following something in it, something that will set him free."

Nox nodded and then communicated telepathically with Umbra before fading away.

Umbra then led Link back out of the Ancient Crypt and through the Necropolis.

"What did Nox say to you?" Link asked. Umbra sighed and replied, "You aren't ready to fight Ganondorf yet. Your weaponry is insufficient."

Link stared in shock.

"What, but, this sword and shield have never failed me." He stated, Umbra shook her head. "There is a better shield out there, the Spirit Sage holds it, she will give it to you...She'll also point you to the weapon you need."

Link sighed and reluctantly agreed.

"You'll thank me for it Link, the sword you hold with have no effect on Ganondorf."

Finally they returned to the graveyard and from there to the village.

"I'll go and round up my loyalists and warriors, we'll join the resistance." Umbra stated.

With that she left and Link headed back to the Resistance HQ. Once he entered he reported his success to Dooram and told him about his next step.

"So, you'll be going to the Gerudos?" Dooram asked, Link nodded, "Listen, it will really help our cause if you could secure their aid for the Resistance."

Link smiled, "That won't be a problem, I'll be aiding the Spirit Sage, I'm sure she'll convince her people to join us."

Dooram smiled and nodded.

"Good. We'll do what we can in the battle Link, but from the looks of things...Ganondorf is all yours."

Link nodded and they decided to end their talk and Link headed back to his room, took off his equipment and set it down before flopping down on the bed, exhausted.

As he relaxed he heard a knock at the door. He sat up.

"Come in." The door opened and Link was surprised when he saw who it was. "Svari?"

Svari smiled shyly as she walked in.

"Hi Link." She greeted him, "Um...do you mind if I sit down?"

"Of course not."

Link gestured to the only available seat, the bed next to him. Svari blushed as she sat down, however Link didn't notice. Awkwardly trying to make conversation Svari noticed the bracelet she had given Link was still around his wrist.

"Hey, you still have it." She pointed out, "I was worried that, with all the fighting and stuff you had to do it would have broken or you might have lost it."

"You said it was lucky," He remarked jokingly, "Maybe it is."

Svari laughed and shook her head. Finally, after shifting awkwardly for a minute Svari spoke.

"Link I um...I have something to...to tell you." She stammered, Link turned to her. "What's wrong?"

Before she could continued however there was another knock at the door. They both sighed and Link told the person to come in. Lynia stepped in and looked surprised to see Svari there; Svari narrowed her eyes but didn't say anything.

"Link I...I was wanting to talk to you." She stated, "But, perhaps this is a bad time..."

Link shook his head, "Of course it's not, what do you want?"

Lynia sighed. "I'd...Rather talk to you in private."

"Of course you would." Svari snapped; Link was surprised at this. "Svari?"

"Whatever." She replied before leaving, it sounded like she was in tears.

Link was worried about her, Lynia watched her go sadly.

"What was that all about?" Link wondered aloud.

Lynia turned to face him, shock written all over her face.

"Are you serious Link, you don't know..." She stated, "You can't be that dense, surely."

Link sighed.

"Look Lynia, she was about to tell me something before you came in and now she's just run off."

"Yes, she was about to tell you something Link, the same thing I came to tell you." Lynia explained. "Link, that girl...She and I are more alike than I initially thought...We both love the same man."

Link was shocked at this revelation.

"The same man?" He questioned, Lynia sighed, "Yes...You."

Link couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"You...and Svari, love...me?" He stammered; Lynia nodded. "Yes, that's why she's so upset; she thinks you'll chose me over her...But don't make any decision Link."

"Huh?"

"You have more important things to worry about." Lynia explained, "You have to deal with the last Sage."

Link nodded understanding, Lynia then left. Link was unable to sleep easily that night but he still woke early the following day and gathered his equipment. He noticed Svari but she stayed away from him, it was clear she had been crying all night. Lynia avoided him too and so he headed quickly to the stables and mounted Epona and then Dooram told him about the new location the resistance were moving to; they were going to set up camp south of the Castle, ready for the final assault. Armed with this information Link rode out of Kakariko and headed to the west, heading for Gerudo Desert.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	20. Home of the Gerudo

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**grandshadowseal: Oh he will go to Lake Hylia, just not through converntial means :)**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**Home of the Gerudo**

Link rode across Hyrule Field, heading for the Gerudo Desert. He wondered what the Gerudos situation was now that Phillipe was in the position of dictator. Phillipe's hatred of the Gerudo meant that they would likely be targets of his anger. Link rode closer to the Desert and almost immediately sensed trouble. He drew his sword and shield and rode closer to where the Gerudo had their fortress within the Desert. Sure enough as he approached he saw that there was indeed a small guard contingent camped outside the gates. Link dismounted and led Epona to a good hiding spot. She remained there while he crept closer; he listened carefully to the guards.

"I don't believe this." One of the guards stated, "How long are we gonna remain here. It's clear they're not coming out to fight."

Link smirked, these men were clearly unsatisfied with their long siege, the heat was also getting to them. Suddenly he heard hoof beats and saw a man on horseback approach, a messenger.

"Orders from King Phillipe." He exclaimed, "Our siege is not progressing, orders are to abandon the siege until Lord Ganondorf returns to the Castle, then he shall lead our next siege."

The guards began to pack everything up.

"Finally, let's get outta here."

Within moments the soldiers packed everything up and then left. Link sheathed his weapons, returned to Epona and mounted before riding carefully up to the gates of the fortress.

As he approached a female voice called out to him.

"Halt, that's far enough!"

Link looked up and saw the Gerudo were stationed along the wall of their fortress, all armed with bows and aiming at him.

"I don't intend any of you any harm!" Link called back, "My name is Link Hylias, I'm the Hero of Courage, I am seeking the Spirit Sage, I was led to believe she is here!"

There was whispered conversation between the Gerudo, finally one of them called out.

"Prove you are the Hero of Courage, show us the Triforce mark."

Link nodded and raised his left hand, the Triforce mark glowed. Suddenly another more forceful female voice spoke.

"That's proof enough for me, let him in." There was surprise from the other Gerudo, "But, my lady, he..."

"Let...him...in." The woman enunciated.

Finally the gates opened and Link rode cautiously in. Several Gerudo stood around, armed with scimitars and glaives along with elegantly carved uniquely curved bows. They were dressed in purple baggy pants, and purple elegant shirts, some wore veils. One armed with glaive gestured over a stable at the side of the fortress. Link rode over and once Epona was safe inside he dismounted and followed a pair of Gerudo who led him up the stairs to the interior of the fortress. Inside the large stone room one Gerudo stood out from the others. Her clothing was the same as the others but pink in colour, she wore no veil. She was tall and slender with tan skin and long red hair that she tied back and gold eyes.

The woman looked him up and down before speaking.

"So, you are Link Hylias." She stated, "Saddia Nazeem."

Link bowed politely.

"Pleasure to..." She cut across him however.

"Save it, I'm not exactly fond of outsiders after how my race has been treated."

Link sighed and shook his head.

"Look, this is because Phillipe's in charge, there's more at stake here however." Link explained, "If you're interested there is a resistance movement against Phillipe, you can help them and get your people back to the way they should be treated."

"Just what exactly is 'at stake'?" Saddia asked sarcastically.

Link then explained about Ganondorf and his plot involving the Titan's and his connection to Demise. Saddia sighed and shook her head.

"I see, having to deal with this siege has prevented me from seeing beyond the confines of the fortress." She remarked sadly, "You must speak with Anima, our patron spirit...But there is still one more Titan, if what you say is true."

Link nodded. "The Spirit Titan."

"Yes, a large serpent like creature, it lives in the Desert of the Haunted Wasteland, under the sand. It only emerges to attack, and only exposes its weak points for the briefest moments."

Link sighed.

"I see, well leave it to me." He stated, "I've already defeated the other Titan's so I can handle this."

Saddia nodded. "Very well, it'll be impossible to reach the Desert Colossus where Anima resides unless the Titan is dead."

She then signalled to one of her guards. The guard approached and presented Link with a Gerudo bow and a quiver full of arrows. Another then approached with a rather decorative shield, the shield Link remembered Umbra mentioning. He accepted them gratefully and replaced his current shield with the new one, he slung the bow and arrows over his shoulder and finally ready he left the room. Back outside he returned to the stable and mounted Epona, he then rode out of the fortress and towards the large open gate which led to the Haunted Wasteland, ready to do battle with the Spirit Titan.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	21. Running Battle

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**grandshadowseal: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, yeah, it's a nice place, well, it's only gonna appear briefly in this chapter but it will appear again at the end of the story so don't worry :)**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**Running Battle**

Link rode carefully out into the Haunted Wasteland. He looked around; in various stages of decay were several bodies, clearly of people who had fallen foul of the Titan. According to Saddia however, these bodies were only half of those who had fallen by this Titan, Link had a nasty feeling that the other half had been eaten.

"Easy girl." He whispered to Epona, "We don't know where this thing is."

Epona waked cautiously, Link knew that her senses would be sharper and her sixth sense would alert her of any danger a lot quicker than him. He was relying on that in order to find the Titan before he became its next meal. Epona suddenly became nervous and Link realized the Titan was close; he quickly drew his bow and notched an arrow as he scanned the horizon. A nearby rumbling sound caught his attention, then, from the desert floor, only about four feet to his right, the Titan burst out of the ground. Saddia's description hadn't done it justice. The creature was huge, a large serpent, easily a minimum of twenty feet long, with purple scales that looked very resistant to damage. On its head and along the length of its body Link spotted the seven crystals, they were covered by a layer of scales which briefly retracted and then closed again.

"This is what she meant by brief time." Link realized, "I have to strike just as it opens those scales, only then can I strike the crystals."

Link prepared himself, grateful for wielding a Gerudo bow. It was well known that Gerudos fashioned the strongest and most elegant bows in Hyrule, so he knew his current bow was stronger than the one he had been using previously. With a roar the Titan dived back into the ground and the battle began.

Epona took off at a gallop and Link held on. Taking careful aim with his bow, ready to strike at a moments notice. The Titan leapt out of the ground and attempted to devour Link and Epona but missed, it hissed in anger and Link let his arrow fly. Right on cue the scales covering the crystal briefly opened and the arrow struck home, piercing the crystal and destroying it, the Titan howled and roared again, attempting a second devour. It missed and instead burrowed back underground. Epona veered around, changing course, avoiding a cliff as Link notched another arrow. He kept a careful watch, this time the Titan came up from the right hand side and attempted another dive. Link fired and knocked it off course by taking out the second crystal. Link prepared to repeat the process but the Titan seemed to have smartened up and Link's third arrow instead imbedded itself in the Titan's left eye. Growling at this he took advantage of the momentary agony that stopped the beast in its tracks to fire again and this time destroy the third crystal. The retracting scales opened and closed rapidly as the beast went to burrow again, Link fired and only just destroyed the fourth crystal before it burrowed back underground. Link then realized that the cliff wasn't the only obstacle. He couldn't escape the Titan now, apart from the cliff the rest of the area had been covered in an impassable sandstorm, trapping Link in an arena like area. Epona continued to circle around the outside as the Titan reared up again. Link fired but the Titan twisted in midair and he missed. Gritting his teeth he fired again and struck the scales, the arrow bouncing harmlessly off. He shook his head and focused, he only had one more chance before the Titan burrowed again. He fired and finally struck the fifth Crystal. The Titan burrowed quickly and Link realized that now, the dark energy leaking from the shattered crystals was revealing its location underground.

Taking advantage of this he readied his next arrow and positioned himself carefully. When it came back out he reacted instantly and shattered the sixth crystal. He then took aim at the seventh but only struck the Titan's second eye. Although blind the beast was in agony and lunged forwards with surprising speed. Epona narrowly avoided it. Link, on the other hand, landed on its head. He sheathed his bow and attempted to pierce the last crystal with his sword but instead the sword got stuck in the scales. It was then Link realized the horrifying truth. The Titan had overshot its mark. It wasn't burrowing underground, it had gone over the cliff, and he was going with it. Before he could react the Titan hit the water and the current swept them away over the waterfall and into the river below. The moment he hit the water again Link blacked out from the impact. When Link recovered he was aware that his entire body was in pain. He was also aware of the lower half of his body being in contact with water. He recovered and looked around, he was lying on a small sandbank, ahead of him were his sword and shield along with his bow. His quiver was still on his back but most of the arrows had fallen out onto the sandbank. He was aware that he had several injuries but none of them seemed fatal. It was then he noticed that, to his dismay, his sword was snapped in two. Groaning he gathered up the rest of his equipment and strapped it all back on before sitting at the top of the sandbar, where it met the grass. He then looked around and realized where he was.

'_This is Lake Hylia.'_

Link smiled at being surrounded by such abundant life and vitality. The lake was almost crystal clear and apart from a few islands in the centre there was nothing to interrupt the water. He noticed many natural rock formations and a few man made structures were visible, but they seemed to add to the beauty of the area. Just then however the lake began to bubble and the Spirit Titan emerged, blind, enraged and still having one of its life crystals intact.

'_Not good.'_ Link thought as he tried to grab his bow but found he was in too much pain to move quickly.

Before the Titan could strike however a magical bolt struck the crystal and vaporized it. The Titan shrieked and then disappeared. Link turned to see who had saved him and gaped in shock, it was Ganondorf.

Ganondorf smirked as he lowered his hand and casually dusted his cape off.

"Well, that was fun." He remarked, Link struggled to turn around, "You…what are you…?"

"It was of no further use to me," He replied, "But you still are, dear boy."

"What are you talking about?"

"You'll find out soon enough, you're getting closer." Was the enigmatic reply. "Well, I have somewhere else I need to be."

With that Ganondorf teleported away. Link groaned again and finally managed to get to his feet. Link then spotted, to his relief, some whistle grass. He picked some up and blew into it. Within moments Epona arrived and he mounted her before riding cautiously back to the Hyrule field and from there to Gerudo Desert. He soon reached the fortress and saw all the Gerudo cheering and saluting his return. It was clear they knew about the Spirit Titan's demise. They led Link to Saddia and, while the doctors treated Link as best as they could, Saddia awarded him with the Spirit Seal. Finally, once Link recovered sufficiently to walk she led him out to the Haunted Wasteland again, leading him to the Desert Colossus where Anima resided.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	22. To the Temple of Time

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**MasterMind 16X: That's cool, I don't mind, glad you've enjoyed all of them, yeah, to be honest it's my favorite Titan battle too. Although the next boss fight should be interesting and always seems to be a fan favorite.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**To the Temple of Time**

This time the Haunted Wasteland was peaceful. Link could see the holes where the Titan had burrowed were all that remained of his fight. Finally they passed the Haunted Wasteland and reached the Desert Colossus. At the centre was a small spring. Floating above it, already waiting for them was Anima. Unlike that other Great Spirits who were clearly adults Anima looked like a child. A Gerudo child dressed in purple robes. She smiled when she saw Saddia and Link approach.

"Welcome, you have done much Hero of Courage." She stated, "Now you are reaching your final challenge. You have five of the six seals. The Light Sage holds the remaining one."

"Where will I find him?" Link asked. Anima smiled.

"He has been hiding in plain sight the whole time." She explained, "He is in fact the High Priest of the Temple of Time."

"Foron Lumen is the Sage of Light?" Link gasped.

Anima smiled.

"Yes, you must hurry; already you are hurtling towards your destiny." She then continued. "Ganondorf has already accomplished the first part of his goal. By absorbing energy from the Titan's he has absorbed the energy of their creator."

"Demise?"

"Yes, Demise, using Demise's own energy, Ganondorf plans to break the link that keeps reviving him as part of Demise's curse." Anima paused and then explained. "But in order for it to work, he needs you…The Hero of Courage to defeat him in battle and send him to Limbo again, once there he can free himself…Then, you all need to follow Princess Zelda's advice…She will tell you what to do and finally the Triforce will reunite and destroy Demise for good."

Link nodded, finally realized what he needed to do, the book Ganondorf had read, it had told him about the Titans and their connection to Demise and Ganondorf had seized the opportunity to finally free himself.

Link then remembered something; there was still one item of equipment he was missing, one that he would now need more than ever given his broken sword.

"I was told that I needed to find a sword, one that could defeat Ganondorf."

Anima nodded.

"Yes, the Master Sword, Foron will guide you to it, that is what you need the six seals for, to unlock it and its power."

With that she faded away. Link and Saddia returned and Link got ready while Saddia prepared her people for battle and left to join the Resistance while Link rode to the hill that led to the Temple of Time. As he rode he was wary, he knew that without his sword he would have to rely on his bow. Luckily it seemed that the monsters and any soldiers that were loyal to Phillipe were all recalled to inside the Castle. Link could see the Resistance's camp and knew that he would head there as soon as he got the Master Sword. He rode up to the hill and then after making sure the path ahead was indeed clear he rode up to the temple. Epona waited outside as Link entered. The place was deserted except for Foron Lumen himself. Foron was of medium height with a toned build, short grey hair and a black beard and moustache; he was clad in yellow robes representing his element. He looked up as Link entered and smiled.

"Welcome Hero of Courage." He stated, "I have been expecting you."

Link approached him and bowed.

"I was told to come here to find the Master Sword, but I also need the Seal of Light."

Foron nodded.

"Yes, I know. Here is the Seal, take it."

With that he handed the Seal over to Link who was surprised.

"I thought I'd have to fight a Titan or some monster to get this Seal?" Foron shook his head.

"Your fight waits after you claim the sword." He then added cryptically, "But beware, if you are to claim the Sword of Evil's Bane…Then you must overcome your worst enemy…yourself."

Despite Link's confusion he offered no further explanation.

Following Foron's guidance Link headed to the back of the Temple where a large design covered the wall. Suddenly the six Seals reacted and flared with power. They flew from Link's pouch and embedded themselves in the wall, following that the wall opened to reveal a hidden chamber. Link slowly, cautiously walked in. The room was large and appeared to be empty except for a large pedestal and stuck in that pedestal was a sword. The sword had an elegant blue wing shaped guard and gold designs, the blade looked very sharp and seemed to glow faintly, on the cross guard Link noticed a Triforce emblem. He knew then that this was definitely the Master Sword. He cautiously approached it and, with Foron's words in his mind, he took a deep breath. He then pulled it out of the pedestal with ease and was suddenly surrounded by a brilliant light, when the light disappeared Link was no longer standing at the pedestal, he had disappeared.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	23. The Darkness Within

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**grandshadowseal: Well, enjoy :)**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**The Darkness Within**

When Link's vision was clear again he noticed that he was no longer standing in the Master Sword's chamber. He was standing in a pure white void; he was holding the Master Sword in his hand, as well as his shield. His bow and quiver along with his arrows had disappeared, Link looked around.

"What is this place?" He wondered, his voice echoing, "Is this what Foron meant...Is this where I'll face my next challenge?"

Suddenly a voice echoed out of nowhere.

"The Master Sword will not fully awake, you cannot wield it properly, unless you can defeat your inner darkness."

Link looked around in shock, but there was no one around. Until suddenly, from the floor a figure appeared. Link was shocked the figure looked exactly like him; with some exceptions, his hair and tunic were black, his eyes were red and he wielded a darker version of the Master Sword and a darker shield. The disembodied voice echoed again.

"Behold, your darkness brought to life. Dark Link, this will test your resolve. Defeat your inner evil, only then will you fully awaken the powers of the Master Sword."

Dark Link gave an evil smirk revealing sharp pointed teeth; suddenly he lunged forwards, thrusting with his sword.

Link leapt back, narrowly dodging the strike. He attempted to counterattack but Dark Link parried the blow and struck out with one of his own. Link only just blocked it. He slowly backed off as Dark Link smirked and took a battle position again.

'_Okay, this is bad, I've gotta think...' _He pondered to himself, _'Gotta come up with some plan to beat him, outflank him somehow.'_

Dark Link stood quietly, waiting for Link. It was then Link came up with an idea. He readied himself and then feinted to the left before weaving around to the right and attempting to strike. However Dark Link, acting almost too quickly to be seen, easily blocked the strike and delivered one of his own. Link grimaced as the dark blade cut into his side. He quickly rolled out of the way of the follow up strike, earning a second cut for his trouble. Link ignored the pain as he observed his opponent carefully. Dark Link was standing casually, almost as if he wasn't ready for an attack. Link glared and decided to try a different plan. Just then something unnerved him, the moment he was ready to carry out his plan, Dark Link assumed a battle stance. Link decided to try something and carried out his plan, he charged in, shield raised and prepared to launch a thrust attack. Dark Link held his shield out defensively and attempted an overhead strike, over the shield. Link dodged and changed tactics. Accordingly Dark Link changed his stance, Link however leapt back and stopped fighting, Dark Link lowered his guard and stood, smirking, Link however also smirked. He finally understood.

Link shook his head, now it made sense. He had been making plans and focusing too much on them. He knew that Dark Link was essentially the same as him. Therefore by planning he was giving Dark Link insight into how he was going to fight. Link made his next move, he didn't plan anything out he simply charged in, ready to attack. Dark Link was taken by surprise; with Link acting on instinct he couldn't form an effective defence plan. He only just blocked Link's strike but his defence was futile as Link continued to attack. Dark Link struck back but he soon received several injuries and strikes which caused him to stagger back. Link was also injured, by now they were both sporting several cuts and other wounds.

"This...This isn't...over!" Dark Link snarled. Link shook his head.

"It is now."

Dark Link roared and charged, Link however held his ground and blocked the strike. Dark Link was now off balance and Link took advantage of the opportunity. He struck and pierced the embodiment's heart. With a howl of pain Dark Link dissolved in a cloud of shadow and with a brilliant flash the radiance and power of the Master Sword was restored. There was another flash and Link was finally transported back to the Temple of Time.

Link breathed a sigh of relief as he noticed that the wounds he had received had only existed in that void and that his bow and quiver were back. He turned and left the chamber, Foron was standing waiting.

"So, you have succeeded." He stated, Link nodded.

"Yes, The Master Sword has been reawoken and now...I'm ready."

Foron gestured to the exit and together they left the Temple of Time, heading for the Resistance camp, ready for the final battle.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	24. Romance Blooms

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story, enjoy.

**Reviews**

**grandshadowseal: Yeah, he did :)**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**Romance Blooms**

Link and Foron walked outside, Foron used his magic to teleport directly to the camp while Link mounted Epona and rode down the hill and directly to the camp. It did not take him long to arrive, his thoughts were confirmed by the few caravans he had passed. There were no monsters out in the field, or soldiers, since they had all been pulled into the castle by Phillipe and Ganondorf, ready for the attack by the Resistance. Link finally arrived at the camp, Dooram waited to greet him.

"Hey, you made it." He stated, "So, how did everything go?"

Link dismounted and Epona was escorted to the stables. Link smiled.

"Perfect, I have everything I need; now we have a much better chance of victory." Dooram nodded.

"Good, Queen Cordelia is staying in Kakariko, with any luck, she'll be able to come back to the castle, but only if we win this battle."

Link nodded.

"Right, we'll win this fight, I'm sure of it." Dooram smirked and nodded.

"Good, tomorrow, we get to work."

Link nodded and as Dooram left for his tent one of the other Resistance members showed Link to his tent. Link thanked him and headed inside the tent. He unbuckled the belts holding his weapons and set them up on the weapon racks inside the tent before sitting down on the bed.

Link was tense, he was aware that he was reaching his final battle, Ganondorf was waiting for him inside the castle, he was waiting for Link to fulfil his role and then deal with Demise once and for all. Link lay back and then sat back up again sharply, he had felt something underneath his head, he reached under the pillow and pulled out what looked like a letter. He blinked, confused and read it.

'Link

I need to speak with you urgently.

Meet me at the tent at the rear of the camp'

Link was even more confused but decided to see what this was about. He cautiously left his tent and approached the mentioned tent. There was currently no one around, he looked around and stood.

'_Should...Maybe I should just leave it...unless...'_

"Link?"

Link spun around and was as surprised as the person who had spoken.

"Svari?" He asked, "What are you doing here?"

"I...I found, this letter in my tent." She explained, showing him the letter. Link was surprised.

"But, I was given a letter exactly like that."

"Then, who could've sent this?" She asked, another female voice spoke up.

"It was me."

They both turned and were surprised, it was Lynia.

Lynia stepped forwards, Svari found her voice again first.

"What, what are you doing here?" She gasped, "What do you mean you sent them."

Lynia sighed and then shook her head.

"I think; it's time we settled this little problem." She explained, "We can't keep doing this, it's going to negatively affect all three of us."

"What are you...?" Svari began but Link explained, "I already know Svari, about both of you."

Svari's eyes widened and her face went scarlet. Lynia nodded.

"Yes, and I think it's time we stopped tearing Link in two," She explained, "It's clear to me that Link's heart is already set, even though he hasn't realized it yet."

Link was amazed at this but then realized she was right. As he thought about it he realized that, subconsciously he had already made his choice. Svari stammered a few things, still red-faced before suddenly losing her nerve and running away. Lynia shook her head.

"Link, you know what you have to do." She stated, "You know already that my duties as a priestess come before anything else."

Link nodded.

"Yeah."

"You need someone who can make you happy, go to her." Lynia replied.

Link nodded and smiled before hurrying after Svari.

Link found her in her tent, crying.

"Svari." He called out, hesitantly.

She looked up, her face registered surprise.

"Link, what are...what are you doing here?" She asked, disbelief colouring her voice.

"Lynia was right; I have already made up my mind." He explained. Svari shook her head, "Then why are you here."

Link stepped closer.

"This is why I'm here."

With that he tenderly brushed away the tears and kissed her deeply. Svari was surprised before kissing back. Finally they separated for air, Link thought Svari's face couldn't get any redder, he was wrong.

"Then you...you..." She breathed, Link nodded, "Yes. Svari please, don't put yourself at risk tomorrow."

She shook her head.

"I have to fight Link; I can't just stay behind, not knowing what happened."

Link sighed and kissed her forehead.

"Okay, just please...be careful, I've only just admitted the truth, I don't wanna lose you so soon."

Svari smiled and nodded, Link left and returned to his tent, it was almost time, tomorrow, the final battle would begin.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	25. The Battle Begins

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story.

**Reviews**

**grandshadowseal: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it :)**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**The Battle Begins**

The following day, Link rose early; he pulled the tunic on, strapped on all his weapons and left the tent, ready for battle. He joined the rest of the Resistance, an army of the combined forces of all the races adding up to ten thousand fighters. The majority of the fighters were Hylian or Goron. The Zora's made up the smallest number of the force but there was no doubt their combat skills were more than sufficient. Link approached Dooram who was at the head of the army.

"So, what's the plan?" He asked. Dooram spoke, his tone businesslike.

"Our progress is going to be slowed by the closed gates as well as the siege machines and guards on the walls. They're expecting us."

Link thought for a moment and then finally made up his mind.

"Leave it to me; I'll take the vanguard of the attack. I'll get the gates open; I'll need the Sages magic to take out the siege engines and the Gerudo to take out the archers."

"The Gerudo?"

"Who better than the best archers in Hyrule to take out enemy archers." Link replied.

Dooram nodded, smirking.

"Okay, I'll bring the main body of our army up after you to back you up," He stated, "Once we break through the gates we'll break the second gate and take over the Castle Town and push the enemy back."

Link agreed and they gathered their weapons and prepared to advance. Link mounted Epona and with the Sages and the Gerudo he advanced to the main gate.

As they got closer the archers readied their bows and fired. However Link halted the troops the moment before the enemy fired. He knew about the range of Hylian bows and sure enough, the arrows fell short. Realizing this, the archers stopped and Link signalled the Gerudo, they retrieved the arrows fired at them and, using their bows which offered longer range, returned fire. Striking the archers and forcing the enemy to use the trebuchet. The Sages began working their magic and struck the Trebuchets repeatedly, either destroying them or stopping them from firing. Link took his chance and charged closer to the gate. Link glanced back and he saw the rest of the Resistance coming up. He readied himself, stopped at moat and drew the Master Sword. He raised it and gathered power, the sword began to glow and finally he thrust it forwards and a beam of energy shot out, demolishing the gate and creating a walkway for entry into the castle. Taking advantage of this Dooram signalled the charge and the entire Resistance force charged into the castle, the remaining forces on the wall fled and attempted to secure the first district of the town and the second gate. However soon the Resistance held many important points and had been able to breach the second gate before it could be closed. They had lost only two Hylian members while the enemy had lost over one hundred men. However they knew better than to get complacent, the battle was just beginning.

However things now looked more difficult, aside from the remaining soldiers, Ganondorf's monsters were now part of the battle. Link again led the charge; they began to fight against the soldiers and the monsters. However now things were slightly against the Resistance, several of them were killed by the monsters. Link, Dooram and the Sages along with Lynia were the only fighters who were taking down the monsters with ease.

"This isn't good." Link stated, "We're getting nowhere, Ganondorf is probably reviving these monsters as we're fighting, making it an endless battle."

Dooram nodded.

"I know, but we have to keep going." He called back, "We have to at least clear a path for you to get inside, then you can reach the throne room and get Ganondorf and Phillipe."

Just then Dooram grunted as an arrow struck his shoulder. He growled and pulled the arrow out; it luckily hadn't pierced his armour. He fired the arrow back at the archer, killing him outright.

"Are you alright?" Link asked, worried. Dooram nodded, "Yeah, I'm okay."

Dooram shook his head and headed back to join the fight. Link charged out too and continued to cut the monsters down. Link looked around. Lynia was no longer fighting; she was back in the first district with the mages that served as medics. Bagura and Aquina were injured and had to be borne out to be healed. Saddia and Umbra were fighting well, so was Foron. Rodolf continued to fight but was tiring. Link couldn't see Svari anywhere, worried he charged over to Rodolf.

Link charged in and killed the monsters attacking Rodolf; Rodolf blasted a nearby soldier away with a spell and then turned to Link.

"There you are." He barked, "You better hurry, Ganondorf won't wait forever."

"I can't get into the main keep yet." Link replied, "Where's Svari."

Rodolf smirked and pointed over to the opposite end of the courtyard.

"Holding her own."

Svari was indeed fighting well. Using her small size she slipped under opponents attacks, got under their guard and fought well. Many of her opponents were either too shocked to strike back or even attack in the first place. Finally Rodolf spoke again.

"I'll clear you a path, you just get ready to charge in…also, try and defeat as many monsters as you can. Thin their numbers."

Link looked at him confused and he clarified.

"Have you not noticed? The monsters you've killed haven't come back to life." He explained, "The Master Sword makes it impossible for Ganondorf's magic to reach them."

Link smiled, finally understanding and charge out. Slaying as many monsters as he could while Rodolf opened up a path to the main keep. Finally he saw his chance and charged straight for it. Once he reached the top of the steps he dismounted, strapped his bow and quiver to Epona and then, armed with only the Master Sword and his shield, he entered the keep. There was little if any security inside with them all being outside fighting the battle, before long Link stood before the doors to the throne room. This was it; he was ready for his final battle. Steeling himself he pushed open the doors and entered.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	26. The 'King's' Folly

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story.

**Reviews**

**grandshadowseal: Thanks, I get your reference now, glad you enjoyed it.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**The 'King's' Folly**

As soon as Link entered he drew his sword and shield. The doors instantly closed behind him and he stepped forwards. He stopped short of the centre of the room and looked up at the thrones on their raised dais. Phillipe sat there smirking; he was clad in regal armour and wearing the crown of Hyrule; attached to the armour was a cape and belted to his waist was an elegant rapier. Zelda sat in the second throne, or more accurately, was chained to the second throne. She was tightly gagged and helpless, her frustration was clear, standing between the two thrones, his sword sheathed and placed, tip down on the ground, his hands resting on the pommel, was Ganondorf. Link glared as Phillipe laughed.

"Well, well, look who showed up." He remarked, "The traitor."

"The only traitor here is you Phillipe!" Link snapped back, Phillipe stood up.

"Is that any way to talk to your king, you miserable peasant." He sneered as he began to step down from the dais and approach Link.

Link shook his head.

"You're no King, Phillipe; you're a usurper, who stole power from who it rightfully belonged too."

Phillipe laughed.

"I took what was rightfully mine after mindless fools stole it from me." He replied, "Not that I'd expect you to understand, given how blinded you are with your own importance."

"I'm not here to argue morals Phillipe; I'm here to finish this."

Phillipe drew his rapier and pointed it at Link.

"Then do so, if you can."

Link dropped into his battle position, ready for the fight.

Phillipe laughed, arrogantly assuming that he would be in for an easy victory. He attacked immediately and thrust. Link parried the blow with his shield and pushed him back. Phillipe simply dodged Link's follow up strike and attempted another attack. However Link blocked this too and struck out with the Master Sword, injuring Phillipe in the thigh. Phillipe grimaced at his injury.

"A lucky strike." He growled before renewing his attack.

Link continued to block and parry the blows as Phillipe became more and more agitated and angry and therefore becoming easier to read. The fight hadn't lasted more than ten minutes before Phillipe was sweating, bleeding from several injuries and staggering back. Link was barely phased and shook his head.

"Honestly, some King you'd make." He remarked, "You can't even defend yourself, your Kingdom would fall in seconds."

"Shut up!" Phillipe bellowed. "How dare you…I am the King, and I will not be spoken to like that!"

Enraged beyond reason Phillipe attempted to attack again. This time Link struck out with the Master Sword and broke the rapier in two. Phillipe stopped, shocked before suddenly Link slammed him in the face with his shield and knocked him to the ground. He scrambled back, unable to get to his feet. He was no longer arrogant or cocky, he was panicking.

"But how, this is impossible, it cannot be."

He stopped as he reached the dais. Link remained where he was; he knew it wasn't over yet.

Phillipe looked up at where Ganondorf had stood, watching the fight impassively. He glared at the man who had made all his plans thus far possible.

"What are you waiting for!?" He bellowed, "Kill him."

Ganondorf however shook his head and with a wave of his hand he released Zelda from her bonds, the gag was also removed.

"What are you doing?"

"You have outlived your usefulness to me Phillipe." Ganondorf stated, "Now is the moment _I've_ been waiting for."

He smirked and grabbed Zelda before pulling her down the dais and over to Link. Link quickly stepped between Zelda and Ganondorf as Ganondorf stepped back, smiling.

"Now, Hero of Courage…Let us end this."

With another wave of his hand Ganondorf threw Phillipe across the room and slammed him into a pillar. He left him lying there and focused on Link even as Phillipe bellowed at him.

"You traitor, how dare you do this to me!" Phillipe yelled, "I am the King, without me you wouldn't even be here, I…"

Silence!" Ganondorf bellowed.

His voice echoed and startled Phillipe into obeying. Link and Ganondorf then faced off, ready for their battle. Ganondorf slowly drew his sword from its scabbard, speaking as he did so.

"Finally, after all these years of torment, after being cursed since my birth." He stated, "I shall finally be free, one way or another."

He threw aside the scabbard and took up his battle stance. Zelda drew back to a safe distance as Link also assumed his battle stance.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	27. Ganondorf's Gambit

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story.

**Reviews**

**grandshadowseal: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, yup, here it is. Well, wait and see what happens here an in future chapters.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**Ganondorf's Gambit**

Link and Ganondorf both slowly circled each other as they prepared to fight. Ganondorf attacked first, launching a spinning strike. Link warded it off with his shield and attempted to attack with the Master Sword. Ganondorf blocked each strike however before retaliating with a two handed overhead strike. Link blocked the strike but the force of the blow knocked him backwards. He hit the ground hard and quickly raised his shield in defense. To his surprise no follow up strike occurred. He looked and saw that Ganondorf was standing back, waiting for him.

"Get up." Ganondorf growled.

"What?!" Phillipe interjected loudly, "He's helpless, finish him off!"

"I'm fighting on my own terms you simpleton." Ganondorf shot back at Phillipe. "This is a true fight, warrior against warrior. There's no honour in killing a helpless opponent."

Then, without another word to Phillipe Ganondorf approached Link and pulled him back to his feet.

"Now, back to our battle positions, let's go again."

Still surprised at this honourable, chivalrous act, Link agreed and resumed his battle stance. The fight then continued. They continued to fight. Link finally got a strike in, injuring Ganondorf's shoulder. Ganondorf growled in pain but gave no other reaction. He then proceeded to pay Link back in kind by striking Link a blow to the shoulder, leaving a similar gash.

They both stood, on guard again and, after a brief pause began to fight in earnest, trading blows, parrying, blocking and even inflicting like wounds on each other. It wasn't until they locked weapons for a third time did either of them speak.

"Seems like this is going to go on forever." Ganondorf stated. Link glared at him.

"No, it won't, I will defeat you."

Ganondorf shook his head.

"Prove it, let you courage and your strength guide you." He stated, before finally adding, angrily, "Stop holding back!"

Link sighed and shook his head but then smiled.

"If that's really what you want."

Ganondorf smirked.

"You have no idea." He replied before they finally pushed apart.

With that Link focused and let the Triforce of Courage endow him with its strength. He then prepared to make his attack. Ganondorf also prepared and they resumed fighting. This time Link dealt a savage blow to Ganondorf's back and easily dodged the return strike. Ganondorf knelt down and grimaced before launching a magic attack, Link struck it with the Master Sword, deflecting it. Ganondorf quickly caught the attack and let it fizzle out before swinging his sword in a wide arc. Link ducked and delivered a powerful slash to Ganondorf's knee. Ganondorf roared in pain as he fell to the ground. Link smirked and stepped back.

"One good turn deserves another." He stated, "Get up, I'll let you…It's not like I can finish you from there, it has to be a frontal strike."

Ganondorf chuckled at that and managed to get back to his feet. He shook his head, enjoying the irony and then prepared to attack again. They both readied one final strike and charged. Link was quicker with great force he pierced Ganondorf's heart. The Gerudo King roared with rage and pain as the sword was pulled out before dropping his own sword and falling back to hit the ground. His eyes rolled back and closed, the fight was over, for now.

Link sheathed his sword and, leaving Ganondorf and ignoring the broken Phillipe, he turned to Zelda.

"Your Highness, are you alright?" He asked, concerned, she nodded.

"I'm fine Link, thank you." She replied, "But this isn't over yet, we must get out of here, this is no place to fight him."

As she spoke she pointed over at Ganondorf, Link saw the dark energy gathering and realized what was happening, he was transforming into his beast form Ganon. Just then the doors to the throne room burst open and Epona burst in. Link smiled, the perfect escape plan. He helped Zelda mount Epona and then climbed on himself. By the time they were ready Ganon had finished his transformation and stood, growling at them. Link urged Epona to go quickly and she charged out of the room, Ganon close behind them. Over Ganon's deafening roars Link called to Zelda.

"Keep your head down, I'll try and get a clear shot."

Zelda did so and Link took aim with his bow and fired. The arrow bounced uselessly off the dark beast's hide.

"Link, forget it, I know what to do, but you need to get us outside." Zelda told him.

Link nodded and re-secured his bow before urging Epona to go faster. Epona galloped at top speed and, with Ganon still in pursuit, burst out of the main keep and hurtled down the steps.

Outside Link noticed that at least a third of the Resistance had been killed. Luckily none of the major figures in it had been amongst them, although there were quite a few injuries. The monsters had all disappeared and the few remaining enemy soldiers had surrendered. Dooram smiled as he saw Link and Zelda coming out but Link shook his head.

"It's not over yet, get away from the doors, quickly!"

Dooram hastened to obey and everybody fell back, just in time. Ganon came crashing through the doors and landed at the base of the steps. It was then Zelda held out her hands and closed her eyes in prayer. In a few short moments there were flashes of light and she was armed with a golden bow and Light Arrows.

"Keep Epona moving, avoid his attacks." She explained, "I'll use the arrows to stun him. It will probably take about five arrows to hold him in place. Once he's stunned, finish him off with the Master Sword, thrust it through his chest again."

Link nodded and they immediately put the plan into action, dodging the first attack as the others watched tensely. It was clear almost immediately that Zelda's accuracy with a bow was as good as Link's if not better. She had already struck the beast four times, having only missed once. She took aim again and this time struck it dead on. With Ganon stunned Link leapt off Epona and thrust his sword through Ganon's heart. He then leapt back. Epona stopped and Zelda dismounted. Epona then backed away as Link and Zelda stood next to each, watching as Ganon returned to human form. The others all stood, watching the scene before them.

Ganondorf dropped to his knees and smiled.

"At last, finally I…" He coughed briefly before smiling again. "Link, Zelda, you still have one more battle, but it's not one you can win alone…When the time comes, Zelda, you must ensure that you convince everyone…You will need the right help…"

With that his eye's widened briefly and Zelda gasped as she heard the telepathic message. Still smiling Ganondorf fell back, dead and faded away, likely ending up back in Limbo. Link and Zelda kept on guard, even as the others started cheering, believing the nightmare to be over. The cheering quickly stopped however when Phillipe materialized in front of the steps.

"How quaint." He stated, his voice deeper than usual, "Celebrating prematurely, a victory you don't even have yet."

Link and Zelda glared, they saw right through the disguise.

"So, you've possessed _him_ in order to return to the physical world." Zelda spat, Link shook his head.

"We're not fooled; you can show your true face…Demise."

Phillipe laughed.

"I hoped this human vessel would last as a disguise a bit longer…Oh well."

With that he laughed and suddenly morphed. Phillipe's body was broken apart like a shell and Demise took his true form right in front of them. Demise was a tall muscular being with scale like skin and red eyes. Instead of hair his head was surrounded with red blazing flames. In his hand he brandished a cruel looking sword. He laughed and shook his head.

"Now, finally, I shall claim revenge for myself." He stated, "Let's start hurting the Hero of Courage…Emotionally."

With that he suddenly launched a spell. Everyone was helpless and could only watch as Svari was struck head on. She gave a short cry of surprise and pain before hitting the ground unmoving.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	28. Demise's Triumph

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story.

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**Demise's Triumph**

Stunned shock followed as Everybodys attention was on Svari's unmoving body. Rodolf was the first to recover; he quickly hurried to her side.

"Svari, Svari!" He called out, shaking her shoulder, "Svari!"

Link breath came out in a shaky gasp.

'_No…No it can't be…Svari, no.'_

He turned back to Demise and saw the Demon King was grinning.

"Who shall be next?" Link grit his teeth and glared.

"How about you!" He shot back before attacking.

Demise laughed as a barrier surrounded the fighters in an arena; none of the others could intervene now. Link attempted to strike but Demise simply blocked the strike with his sword. His expression never changing he punched Link in the stomach and sent him flying. Link hit the ground hard before getting back up and, in a blind rage he attacked again. This time he didn't even get close. Demise swung his word and sent a razor sharp gust of wind which struck Link and blasted him back, cutting him several times. Link forced himself back to his feet and growled but before he could charge again he was stopped.

"Link, stop." Zelda called out, blocking his path, "Attacking him in blind anger will only play into his hands."

Link shook his head.

"But Svari…" Zelda gently placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I know, but you have to be smart, don't let him get to you. We need to focus; we need to use the power of the Goddess Bow, the Master Sword and the Triforce in order to beat him."

Link took a deep breath and nodded, they both took up ready positions and, looking amused, Demise also took up his ready position.

They both focused and let the powers of their Triforce parts course through them. Zelda immediately struck out firing an arrow at Demise. Link feinted and attempted to attack on the flanks at the same time. Demise barely had time to raise his sword before both attacks hit. He stumbled back but then, much to their surprise, recovered. His wounds healed and he laughed. In desperation they attacked again and again. Demise didn't even raise his sword or defend himself. He just let them hit and every time the wound would heal like it was nothing, even when Link pierced his heart.

"This is impossible?" Link gasped, "How can he keep shrugging off our blows."

Demise finally sighed.

"I grow weary of this, now, it's my turn."

With that he launched a powerful spell, followed by a sword strike, sending Link and Zelda sprawling to the ground, badly injured. They both struggled to their feet.

"This can't be." Zelda breathed. "We have everything we need to defeat him."

Demise chuckled at that.

"Do you?" He asked rhetorically.

Link groaned and they both tried to attack again, Demise effortlessly dodged and struck Link a powerful backhand before blasting both him and Zelda with a spell that sent them both to their knees. It was then he cast another spell, teleporting Svari into the battle arena.

Demise smirked as he gazed down at Svari.

"Did you honestly think I'd be so merciful as to kill her outright?" He asked rhetorically again, "She's still alive, she hasn't suffered enough."

Link tried to get to his feet.

"No, leave her…" He gasped out before his feet gave way beneath him.

Demise simply laughed and with both his sword and his magic he began torturing Svari, enjoying her screams. Link groaned and tried to block the sound out, but he couldn't.

"Dammit, I don't understand this, why can't we beat him." He lamented, "We have the Master Sword, we have the Goddess Bow, we even have the Triforce."

It was then Zelda realized the truth.

"No Link, we don't, we don't have the _complete_ Triforce." She stated, "We have the Courage and Wisdom to defeat him…But we don't have the Power."

Link groaned.

"Then he's invincible, we just killed Ganondorf and with it, our last hope."

It was then Ganondorf's telepathic message made sense to Zelda.

"That's it." She gasped.

She managed to stand up and then helped Link up. Demise chuckled and picked Svari up by the throat, tightening his grip.

"How feeble, time to say goodbye little girl."

Svari choked and tried to speak but Demise tightened his grip again, strangling her words. Any tighter and Svari realized her neck would snap, she was also unable to breathe and was feeling light-headed as tears formed in her eyes at the thought of dying.

Just then however Zelda's voice rang out and Demise let Svari go, he stepped back, watching with an amused expression as Svari fought for air.

"Everyone, listen to me." She called out, "You heard what Link and I were saying, Ganondorf is Hyrule's last hope. Sages, you must let everyone who isn't here know about this too."

The Sages complied and with their magic Zelda's message carried to every corner of Hyrule.

"Ganondorf is our last hope; he has used the power of the Titan's to release himself. He awaits in Limbo for us to wish him back." She continued, "If we don't bring him back…Hyrule is doomed."

Finally she clasped her hands together and closed her eyes before calling out one last time.

"Everyone, pray now, as hard as you can, for his return…Only a strong prayer, can save Hyrule…no, the world."

Link watched amazed as first the Gerudo and then everyone else mimicked Zelda's actions. Going from the Sages expressions before they started praying, everyone in Hyrule was doing the same thing. Although weak and barely able to move Link noticed that Svari was also praying for Ganondorf. Link closed his eyes and prayed too, praying for the return of Ganondorf, of their last hope.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	29. The Final Battle

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story.

**Reviews**

**grandshadowseal: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it, well; here's the result of everyone's prayer.**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**The Final Battle**

Demise smirked as he watched all those present praying.

"How foolish, praying for a miracle that isn't even going to happen." He remarked. "Well fine, just make yourself easier targets."

With that he walked towards Link, stepping on Svari for good measure. He then stopped in front of Link and raised his sword. He grasped the sword with two hands and brought it down sharply on Link, aiming to cleave his skull. There was a flash and a metallic clang. Everybody opened their eyes. Link and Zelda moved back slightly and smiled. Standing there, wielding the Goddess Sword, having blocked Demise's attack, was Ganondorf.

"What is this?" Demise questioned angrily, "You think to overcome me my puppet."

Ganondorf pushed Demise's blade back and shook his head.

"I am your puppet no longer. I have freed myself of your curse, and your control." He stated, "I am here to put an end to you and then, finally, I shall find peace."

Demise laughed.

"How novel, you think you're free." He stated, "I'll prove you wrong."

He attempted to use a spell, undoubtedly to control Ganondorf's actions. But nothing happened. Demise was shocked as Ganondorf cast his own spell, healing Link and Zelda of their injuries.

"What, impossible!" He roared in a panic, Ganondorf smirked. "Now you face the complete Triforce."

With that the trio readied themselves, armed their weapons and prepared to finish things once and for all. Demise glowered.

"So be it, I shall crush you all!"

He also readied himself and the battle was about to begin.

Demise acted first, swinging his sword in a wide arc, sending out the razor gale of wind again. Ganondorf nullified the attack with a spell and then launched his own attack with his sword. Link also used his sword while Zelda relied on her bow. This time the attacks did damage that was not instantly healed. Demise roared in pain and attempted to attack with any spell or sword technique at his disposal. Ganondorf and Link blocked or dodged the attacks and Zelda always stayed out range, frustrating him even more.

"Enough of this…" Demise growled, "I am the Demon King Demise, I shall not be defeated like this!"

Link glared.

"This is for everyone you've hurt, over all these years." He declared, Ganondorf shook his head.

"You tormented me, made my life hell, and now you shall face absolution."

Zelda nodded, "There's nothing you can do Demise, you are doomed…Link…Be honest with yourself."

Link nodded and together the trio resumed their attack. Demise was powerless. Every one of his strikes was blocked or dodged while they all attacked rapidly and without ceasing, soon he was bleeding from a dozen wounds and in the end he couldn't take it any more, his rage exploded. With a powerful roar he let loose a shockwave which blasted them back. The flames surrounding his head flared as did his eyes. He slammed his sword into the ground and cracked it.

"This ends here and now…" He roared in rage and agony, "Everything ends; I shall destroy the entire world!"

Link and Zelda faltered but Ganondorf didn't. With a powerful blast of magic he knocked Demise back and then wrenched the sword out of the ground. The crack closed and Ganondorf threw the sword with all his might, piercing Demise's stomach. Demise staggered back in agony, he couldn't believe it. He had exhausted all of his energy and could no longer fight, especially not against three opponents. Worse still, his weak point, his chest was now exceptionally vulnerable.

Demise acted instantly and before they could attack him one final time he suddenly grabbed Svari and held her over his chest.

"Will you kill me now, are you willing to kill this little girl too."

This time even Ganondorf faltered.

"Dammit!" He cursed angrily. Link lowered his sword and shield.

"We may have outfought him, but he outsmarted us."

Zelda glared as she kept her bow locked on Demise. Svari groaned and then saw Zelda; she then looked at her fingers, covered in blood. Acting as if she was trying to prise his hand loose she casually drew an 'X' on Demise's hand, the one holding her against him. Zelda understood, she moved closer to Link and Ganondorf and spoke low so Demise couldn't hear them.

"Ganondorf, as soon as I fire…I want you to use whatever magic you can to get Svari away from Demise." She explained, "Link, once that's done, don't hesitate, act immediately…Kill him."

They both nodded and took up their positions. Unaware of their plan or the target on his hand Demise watched them in amusement, thinking them helpless.

"Whatever you have planned won't work." He stated.

Zelda then fired. The arrow struck his hand, Demise screamed in agony and dropped Svari, Ganondorf cast the spell and Svari was warped away from Demise and reappeared behind Ganondorf. Link charged up and leapt onto Demise, he raised his sword for the killing blow. Before he did he followed Zelda's advice about being honest.

"This…is for Svari."

He plunged the Master Sword deep into Demise's heart and leapt back with it as an explosion of light erupted from the wound. Demise howled in pain and rage.

"No! Impossible, I cannot be beaten; I am the Demon King…" He roared helpless as his body started to disintegrate. "My curse has failed; I am…No more…!"

With that Demise turned to dust and was destroyed.

The barrier disappeared; there was stunned silencer and then eruptive applause and cheering. Dooram ran to Zelda, she dropped her bow and arrows and immediately embraced him as he did the same to her. The silence returned and Dooram and Zelda, still holding each other, broke apart. Link and Rodolf hurried to Svari's side as she lay, bleeding, badly injured.

"Svari?" Link breathed, desperate, she opened her eyes slightly and smiled.

"Link". Her voice was weak, just then Ganondorf stepped forwards.

"Allow me."

Ganondorf then spoke in some arcane language, Link realized what he was doing as the three Triforce fragments left their bodies and rejoined. Ganondorf was wishing for all the damage that had been done, to be restored. With a burst of light the Triforce granted that wish and then returned to the Sacred Realm. When Link turned his gaze back to Svari he was amazed, all he injuries were healed. Her eyes opened and she smiled. Link smiled too and pulled her into a tight embrace. Rodolf stepped back, smiling. Still holding Svari Link looked up at Ganondorf.

"What's going to happen to you now?" He asked.

Ganondorf sighed. "My time is done, I shall find peace now, peace and redemption…in death, I can finally die."

Link lowered his head sadly but realized that having lived through an agonizing cycle of death and rebirth, Ganondorf welcomed the prospect of actually dying with open arms, he would finally be free.

"Before I go however, there is one last thing I'd like to see."

Link nodded and decided, along with Svari, Zelda and Dooram, to accompany him.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	30. Release

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story.

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**Release**

So the group of five left Hyrule Castle, those that remained got to work removing the dead and beginning the repairs. Finally Ganondorf, Link, Svari, Zelda and Dooram arrived at Lake Hylia. Svari being supported by Link as she was yet to fully recover. They crossed the bridges and finally stopped on the large island in the centre of the lake. Ganondorf sighed and looked around the entire area before turning to them.

"I wanted this…to be my last view." He stated, "My last view, the greatest example of the natural beauty of this land of Hyrule."

He paused and then continued.

"I can finally go in peace, finally forgiven." He stated, "I want to thank you…to thank all of you for really believing in me."

It was clear that Ganondorf was speaking directly from his heart now and that he knew just how limited his remaining time was.

"I am now free, now absolved of my darkness, of the evil which plagued my soul." He declared, he then smiled and looked over at Dooram and Zelda. "I know that under your rule, Hyrule will flourish. I ask that my people, the Gerudos be allowed to enjoy this time of happiness too."

Zelda smiled and nodded.

"Of course, we will see to it that they are not forgotten." Dooram agreed.

"Yes, everyone is responsible for bringing light back to this land, everyone must be treated equally."

Ganondorf smiled and then turned to Link and Svari.

"The two of you…take care, you deserve to be happy." Link smiled sadly.

"So do you."

Ganondorf gave a short laugh.

"I am happy…Thank you…all of you."

With those words he faded away, finally passing on to the spirit world and dying, he was finally able to rest.

* * *

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


	31. Epilogue

**Legend of Zelda: Breaking the Cycle**

Next chapter of my Legend of Zelda story.

**Reviews**

**grandshadowseal: Indeed he shall, glad you enjoyed it :)  
Renee C'est Pegase: Thanks glad you enjoyed it :)**

Now onto the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda or its characters.

* * *

**Epilogue**

It had been a year since the final victory over Demise and the passing of Ganondorf. Within that year Dooram and Zelda were married. Queen Cordelia abdicated and spent her time in the peaceful gardens of the castle, enjoying her remaining days. Dooram and Zelda became King and Queen of Hyrule. They imposed several changes and finally set up a parliament system which allowed Gorons, Zoras and even the Gerudo to finally have a say in Hyrule's affairs. The Sages returned to their homes and continued to guide their people. The Gerudo were finally given means to resist the death bringing wind from the Haunted Wasteland and were even allowed to integrate with Hylian society. It was the one year anniversary of the victory and Link was at Lake Hylia. He was with Svari, in the year that passed Link regained his position of Captain of the Hylian Knights and also he was still in love with Svari. Svari was slightly more self conscious than usual due to the vast number of scars she now had. These scars were all that remained of her injuries but Link didn't mind, in his eyes none of them detracted from her beauty, if anything they enhanced it, even the ones on her face. Link smiled and put his arm around her; together they walked out and stopped. At Zelda's behest, on the very spot where he finally died, a large monument to Ganondorf had been made. Link and Svari were visiting it to pay their respects to him. After some time Svari rested her head on Link's shoulder, he smiled and kissed her forehead.

"Let's go home." He stated softly, she smiled and nodded.

Together they left the monument and walked back home, finally, everything was at peace. Link smiled, satisfied with this he kissed Svari again, she kissed back, everything was at peace and Hyrule had just entered a new golden age.

* * *

End of chapter and of story, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.


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